"To keep new cases from entering our shores, we will be suspending all travel from Europe to the United States for the next 30 days," Trump said, announcing that the ban would take effect Friday at midnight.

The president spoke to the American people in an address from the Oval Office on Wednesday night, detailing the threat posed by the virus and announcing the actions that his administration was prepared to take.

Trump noted that the European Union failed to ban travel into their country from areas affected by the coronavirus, such as China and Iran, which resulted in widespread outbreaks in Europe.

"The European Union failed to take the same precautions and restrict travel from China and other hotspots," he said. "As a result, a large number of new clusters in the United States were seeded by travelers from Europe."
He said there would be exemptions to the ban for Americans traveling from Europe who had been screened, as well as individuals from the United Kingdom.