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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 53 / Monday, March 22, 2021 / Rules and Regulations Accordingly, this temporary rule extends the temporary final rule published at 85 FR 59655 to continue to address the international spread of pandemic Coronavirus Disease 2019
COVID19 by seeking to slow the transmission and spread of the disease during asylum interviews before USCIS
asylum officers. To that end, this temporary rule will extend the requirement in certain instances that noncitizens interviewed for this discretionary asylum benefit use USCIS
Government-provided interpreters.

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C. The COVID19 Pandemic On January 31, 2020, the Secretary of Health and Human Services declared a public health emergency under section 319 of the Public Health Service Act 42
U.S.C. 247d, in response to COVID19.1
On February 24, 2021, the President issued a continuation of the National Emergency concerning the COVID19
pandemic 2 and on January 7, 2021 the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services renewed the determination that a public health emergency exists.3 A
more detailed background discussion of the COVID19 pandemic is found in the original temporary rule and USCIS
incorporates in this extension the discussion of the pandemic in to this extension. 85 FR 59655.
Since publication of the original rule, several variants of the virus that causes COVID19 have been reported in the United States.4 Some evidence already suggests that at least one variant may be associated with an increased risk of death.5 As of February 23, 2021, there have been approximately 110,763,898
cases of COVID19 identified globally, resulting in approximately 2,455,331
deaths; approximately 27,702,074 cases have been identified in the United States, with about 480,467 new cases being identified in the 7 days preceding February 23rd, and approximately 491,894 reported deaths due to the disease.6
1 HHS, Determination of Public Health Emergency, 85 FR 7316 Feb. 7, 2020.
2 Notice on the Continuation of the National Emergency Concerning the Coronavirus Disease 2019 COVID19 Pandemic, 86 FR 11599 Feb. 26, 2021; Proclamation 9994 of March 13, 2020, Declaring a National Emergency Concerning the Coronavirus Disease COVID19 Outbreak, 85 FR
15337 Mar. 18, 2020.
3 HHS, Renewal of Determination That A Public Health Emergency Exists Jan. 7, 2021, https
www.phe.gov/emergency/news/healthactions/phe/
Pages/covid19-07Jan2021.aspx.
4 CDC, Emerging SARS-CoV2 Variants Jan. 28, 2021, https www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/
more/science-and-research/scientific-briefemerging-variants.html.
5 Id.
6 WHO, Weekly epidemiological update23
February 2021 Feb. 23, 2021, available at https

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As of February 27, 2021, the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration FDA
has issued emergency use authorizations EUAs for three COVID
19 vaccines.7 One vaccine is produced by Pfizer-BioNTech, one by Moderna, and one by Janssen.8 The PfizerBioNTech and Moderna vaccines require two doses to be effective at preventing COVID19 illness.9 The Janssen vaccine requires only one dose.10 As of February 17th 2021, only 15,471,536 people in the United States had completed a COVID19 vaccine regimen.11 The vaccine supply is currently limited, but the federal government is working to expand access to the COVID19 vaccines to everyone in the United States.12 Health experts do not yet know what percentage of people in the U.S. will need to be vaccinated before enough individuals in the community are protected to meaningfully reduce the spread of the disease from person to person.13 Experts are still learning about how effectively the vaccines prevent those who have been vaccinated from spreading the virus that causes COVID19 to other people.14 There are also multiple variants of the virus that causes COVID
19 circulating in the United States.
Scientists are still working to determine how effective the currently authorized vaccines are against these variants.15
www.who.int/publications/m/item/weeklyepidemiological-update23-february-2021.
7 FDA, COVID19 Vaccines Feb. 12, 2021, https www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-andresponse/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19/covid19-vaccines.
8 FDA, COVID19 Vaccines Feb. 12, 2021, https www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-andresponse/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19/covid19-vaccines. Janssen Biotech Inc., the manufacturer of the third vaccine granted an EUA by the FDA, is a Janssen Pharmaceutical Company of Johnson &
Johnson.
9 CDC, Information about the Moderna COVID19
Vaccine Jan. 25, 2021, https www.cdc.gov/
coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/different-vaccines/
Moderna.html; CDC, Information about the PfizerBioNTech COVID19 Vaccine Jan. 25, 2021, https www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/
vaccines/different-vaccines/Pfizer-BioNTech.html.
10 FDA, FDA Issues Emergency Use Authorization for Third COVID19 Vaccine Feb. 27, 2021, https www.fda.gov/news-events/pressannouncements/fda-issues-emergency-useauthorization-third-covid-19-vaccine.
11 CDC, COVID Date TrackerCOVID19
Vaccinations in the United States Feb. 17, 2021, https covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/
vaccinations.
12 CDC, Key Things to Know About COVID19
Vaccines Feb. 9, 2021, https www.cdc.gov/
coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/
keythingstoknow.html?CDC_AA_
refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov %2Fcoronavirus%2F2019-ncov%2Fvaccines%2F8things.html.
13 Id.
14 Id.
15 CDC, Emerging SARS-CoV2 Variants Jan. 28, 2021, https www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/

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Furthermore, hospitalization and mechanical respiratory support may still be required in severe cases of COVID
19 illness.16 Testing is available to confirm suspected cases of COVID19
infection. At present, the time it takes to receive results varies, based on type of test used, laboratory capacity, and geographic location, among other factors.17 The CDC warns that a negative test result could stem from the collection of the sample used in the test occurring too early in the course of that individuals infection, and highlights that the individual may still get sick or test positive later in the course of their infection.18
Many states and businesses are reopening in various phases, yet there are numerous challenges. The CDC has posted guidance for workplaces that either have reopened, or plan to do so, which include: Ensuring social distancing, installing physical barriers, modifying workspaces, closing communal spaces, staggering shifts, limiting travel, modifying commuting practices, and actively encouraging employees who have symptoms to stay home.19
II. Purpose of This Temporary Final Rule In light of the pandemic and to protect its workforce and help mitigate the spread of COVID19, USCIS
temporarily suspended all face-to-face services with the public from March 18, 2020 to June 4, 2020. In an effort to promote safety as USCIS reopened offices to the public for in-person services and resumed necessary operations, so that applicants for asylum and other USCIS immigration benefits could continue with their applications and petitions and not face adverse delays, USCIS implemented various mitigation efforts to protect the health and safety of the employees and the public, including: Requiring facial covers for all employees and members more/science-and-research/scientific-briefemerging-variants.html.
16 CDC, Interim Clinical Guidance for Management of Patients with Confirmed Coronavirus Disease COVID19 Feb. 16, 2021, https www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/
clinical-guidance-management-patients.html.
17 CDC, Test for Current Infection Viral Test Feb. 16, 2021, https www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/
2019-ncov/testing/diagnostic-testing.html.
18 Id.
19 CDC, Guidance for Businesses and Employers Responding to Coronavirus Disease 2019 COVID
19 Jan. 4, 2021, https www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/
2019-ncov/community/guidance-businessresponse.html; CDC, Guidance for Cleaning and Disinfecting Public Spaces, Workplaces, Businesses, Schools, and Homes Jan. 5, 2021, https
www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/
reopen-guidance.html.

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