The end of a controversial border policy is looming.
Title 42, the Trump-era pandemic public health restrictions that became a key tool officials used to turn back migrants at the US-Mexico border, is set to expire on May 11.
Here are answers to some key questions about Title 42, what’s happening on the ground and what could happen next.
In the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a public health order that officials said aimed to stop the spread of Covid-19. The order allowed authorities to swiftly expel migrants at US land borders. The policy is widely known as Title 42, for the portion of US code that allowed the CDC director to issue it.
Migrants encountered under Title 42 have been either returned to their home countries or sent back into Mexico. Under the policy, authorities have expelled migrants at the US-Mexico border more than 2.8 million times since the policy began, according to US Customs and Border Protection data.
The policy, which officials have relied on to manage a spiraling situation at the border, is set to end at 11:59 p.m. ET on Thursday.
We’ve known for months that Title 42’s days were numbered.
The policy’s end comes as the Biden administration is ending the Covid public health emergency nationally.
The emergency declaration was the legal underpinning for Title 42’s border restrictions, in addition to a number of other policies.
Officials predict that lifting Title 42 is likely to spur a significant increase in the number of migrants trying to cross into the US.
One reason for the expected spike: Many migrants who were sent back to Mexico under the policy are desperate and losing patience.
Advocates say for many of those who were expelled under Title 42, the…
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