COVID-19 asylum limits at US-Mexico border to end May 23

By COLLEEN LONG and ZEKE MILLER
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it’s ending a policy that limited asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The government says it’s already making plans to erect tents and take other steps to prepare for an expected influx of migrants. The continued use of public health powers had been widely criticized by Democrats and immigration advocates as an excuse for the United States to shirk its obligations to provide haven to people fleeing persecution. The policy went into effect under President Donald Trump in March 2020. Since then, migrants trying to enter the U.S. have been expelled more than 1.7 million times.