U.S. to permanently end Title 42 policy for unaccompanied minors at border

March 12 (UPI) -- The Centers of Disease Control and Prevention announced Saturday it will end the use of a Trump-era policy as it pertains to turning away unaccompanied migrant children.

The CDC made the announcement in response to a federal court's order, which said the Biden administration can no longer exempt unaccompanied children from Title 42.

Former President Donald Trump enacted Title 42 in March 2020 with the stated purpose of preventing those who cross the border illegally from potentially spreading the novel coronavirus.

The Biden administration temporarily exempted unaccompanied minors from Title 42 after a change in policy in January 2021.

But U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman of the Northern District of Texas ruled March 4 that the Biden administration could no longer exempt minors because Texas would be financially burdened to provide medical treatment and schooling for them.

Unaccompanied minors who are not from Mexico are put into the care of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services until a sponsor or guardian can be found. CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said the department also tests each of the minors for COVID-19 and makes the vaccine available to them.

In response to the judge's ruling, the CDC said it's permanently canceling the use of Title 42 for unaccompanied minors.

"In the current termination, CDC addresses the court's concerns and has determined, after considering current public health conditions and recent developments, that expulsion of unaccompanied non-citizen children is not warranted to protect the public health," the agency said in an early-morning statement.