2025-21962: Expiration of Interim Final Rule: Control of Communicable Diseases; Foreign Quarantine

Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 231 (Thursday, December 4, 2025) [Federal Register Volume 90, Number 231 (Thursday, December 4, 2025)] [Rules and Regulations] [Pages 55813-55814] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 2025-21962] ======================================================================= ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 42 CFR Part 71 [Docket No. CDC-2020-0013] RIN 0920-AA75 Expiration of Interim Final Rule: Control of Communicable Diseases; Foreign Quarantine

Agency

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Action

Final rule. -----------------------------------------------------------------------

Summary

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is announcing that interim final rule (IFR) 0920-AA75, which amended its Foreign Quarantine regulations during the COVID-19 public health emergency, has expired.

Dates

This final rule is effective December 4, 2025. The interim final rule expired on November 21, 2025.

For Further Information Contact

Ashley C. Altenburger, J.D., Division of Global Migration Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road NE, MS-H16-4, Atlanta, Georgia 30329. Telephone: 1- 800-232-4636.

Supplementary Information

On February 7, 2020, HHS/CDC published an interim final rule (IFR) (85 FR 7874) which amended 42 CFR 71.4 by adding two new paragraphs, (d) and (e). These paragraphs enabled CDC to require airlines to collect, and provide to CDC, certain data regarding passengers and crew arriving from foreign countries for the purposes of health education, treatment, prophylaxis, or other appropriate public health interventions, including travel restrictions. At the time, HHS and CDC determined that, given the exigent and rapidly emerging circumstances associated with the 2019-nCoV outbreak, it would have been impracticable and contrary to the public health and, thus, to the public interest, to delay putting these provisions in place until a full public notice-and-comment process had been completed. The IFR indicated that the terms of the rule would expire ``on the earlier of (1) the date that is two incubation periods after the last known case of 2019-nCoV, or (2) when the Secretary determines there is no longer a need for this interim final rule.'' The Federal Public Health Emergency for COVID-19 expired on May 11, 2023. The HHS Secretary has now determined that there is no longer a need for this interim final rule. Therefore, paragraphs [[Page 55814]] (d) and (e) of 42 CFR 71.4 expired on November 21, 2025. Paragraphs (a) through (c), which were finalized in 2017, shall remain (82 FR 6975, Jan. 19, 2017, as amended at 82 FR 31728, July 10, 2017). List of Subjects in 42 CFR Part 71 Apprehension, Communicable diseases, Conditional release, CDC, Ill person, Isolation, Non-invasive, Public health emergency, Public health prevention measures, Qualifying stage, Quarantine, Quarantinable, Communicable disease. For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the Department of Health and Human Services, on behalf of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, amends 42 CFR part 71 as follows: PART 71--FOREIGN QUARANTINE 0