FREEBIRD Act

To terminate the requirement imposed by the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for proof of COVID–19 vaccination for foreign travelers, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Fair Removal of Existing and Enforced Bans on Immunization Relating to Destination Act FREEBIRD Act 2. Terminating CDC requirement for proof of COVID–19 vaccination for foreign travelers (a) In general Beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, the air travel vaccination requirement for foreign travelers shall have no force or effect. (b) Prohibition on funding Beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, no Federal funds may be used to administer, implement, or enforce the air travel vaccination requirement for foreign travelers. (c) Air travel vaccination requirement for foreign travelers In this Act, the term air travel vaccination requirement for foreign travelers (1) the order issued by the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention entitled Amended Order Implementing Presidential Proclamation on Advancing the Safe Resumption of Global Travel During the COVID–19 Pandemic (2) any successor or subsequent order of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention requiring foreign persons traveling by air to show proof of COVID–19 vaccination as a condition on entering the United States. 3. Report Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shall submit a report to Congress on the number of visitors denied entry under the order specified in section 2(c)(1) during the period beginning on April 7, 2022, and ending on the date of the enactment of this Act. 4. Rule of construction Nothing in this Act may be construed to suggest that the provisions of section 2 shall effect the order issued by the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention entitled Requirements for Negative Pre-Departure COVID–19 Test Results or Documentation of Recovery from COVID–19 for Aircraft Passengers Traveling to the United States From the People’s Republic of China

Summary: Fair Removal of Existing and Enforced Bans on Immunization Relating to Destination Act or the FREEBIRD Act This bill nullifies the order issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) titled Amended Order Implementing Presidential Proclamation on Advancing the Safe Resumption of Global Travel During the COVID-19 Pandemic and published on April 7, 2022. (The order restricts the entry of noncitizens who are not immigrants into the United States by air travel unless they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or otherwise attest that they will take public health measures to prevent the spread of the disease.) The bill also nullifies any successor or subsequent orders that require foreign persons traveling by air to show proof of a COVID-19 vaccination as a condition of entry and prohibits the use of federal funds to administer or enforce such a requirement. However, the bill does not affect the CDC order published on January 5, 2023, that governs COVID-19 testing or documentation of COVID-19 recovery for certain individuals traveling from China to the United States by aircraft. In addition, the CDC must report to Congress about the number of visitors who were denied entry into the United States from April 7, 2022, until the date of the bill's enactment.