U.S., Canada, Mexico extend border restrictions during pandemic

Aug. 14 (UPI) -- The United States announced Friday that it's extending its border closures with Canada and Mexico for another month.

Chad Wolf, the acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, made the announcement on Twitter.

"We continue to work with our Canadian and Mexican partners to slow the spread of #COVID19. Accordingly, we have agreed to extend the limitation of non-essential travel at our shared land ports of entry through September 21," he said.

The North American countries closed their respective borders to non-essential travelers -- truck drivers and healthcare workers are allowed to cross -- in March to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Dr. Theresa Tam, the chief public health officer in Canada, said she wants to avoid spikes in coronavirus cases like those seen in the United States after states moved to reopen.

"We want to keep up our good work and, as you've seen from the map, Canada is actually in quite a good position right now," she told reporters Friday, according to the CBC.