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Coronavirus: DHS Announces New Travel Restrictions on Certain Inbound U.S. Flights and Travelers from China, Including Medical Screening and Quarantine

Client Alert | 2 min read | 02.03.20

New Measures for Rerouting Flights and Passengers from China

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced over the weekend that to combat the spread of the Coronavirus, all flights departing after 5 pm EST on February 2, 2020 from China, and all passengers traveling from China will be routed through one of 11 U.S. airports where they will be required to make first entry and be screened:

  • John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), New York
  • Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD), Illinois
  • San Francisco International Airport (SFO), California
  • Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), Washington
  • Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL), Hawaii
  • Los Angeles International Airport, (LAX), California
  • Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), Georgia
  • Washington-Dulles International Airport (IAD), Virginia
  • Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), New Jersey
  • Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Texas
  • Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW), Michigan

Note that per DHS notice, the authorization for rerouting to EWR, DFW, and DTW begins February 3, 2020. 

Travelers will pay no additional costs for any rerouting. Notably, flight crew, and flights carrying cargo-only are excluded from these new measures.

Screening, Quarantine Requirements Imposed; Foreign Nationals Who Visited China Will Be Denied Entry

These 11 airports will implement the administration’s recently announced Coronavirus screening and quarantine protocol, under which:

  • U.S. citizens who have been in Hubei province within 14 days of their return will be subject to up to 14 days of mandatory quarantine.
  • U.S. citizens who have been in other areas of mainland China within 14 days of their return will undergo proactive entry health screening and up to 14 days of self-quarantine with health monitoring.
  • Foreign nationals (other than immediate family of U.S. citizens, permanent residents, and flight crew) who have traveled in China within 14 days of their arrival will generally be denied entry into the U.S.

These restrictions will have immediate and wide- ranging impacts for businesses operating internationally, particularly those that rely on U.S. citizens and foreign nationals to travel to and from China and the United States. Given the fast-changing nature of this outbreak, multinational companies should continue to seek guidance from counsel to assist their employees, contractors, suppliers, and business visitors as they adjust their international business needs in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.

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Client Alert | 4 min read | 08.07.25

File First, Facts Later? Eleventh Circuit Says That Discovery Can Inform False Claims Act Allegations in Amended Complaints

On July 25, 2025, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals issued its decision in United States ex. rel. Sedona Partners LLC v. Able Moving & Storage Inc. et al., holding that a district court cannot ignore new factual allegations included in an amended complaint filed by a False Claims Act qui tam relator based on the fact that those additional facts were learned in discovery, even while a motion to dismiss for failure to comply with the heightened pleading standard under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 9(b) is pending.  Under Rule 9(b), allegations of fraud typically must include factual support showing the who, what, where, why, and how of the fraud to survive a defendant’s motion to dismiss.  And while that standard has not changed, Sedona gives room for a relator to file first and seek out discovery in order to amend an otherwise deficient complaint and survive a motion to dismiss, at least in the Eleventh Circuit.  Importantly, however, the Eleventh Circuit clarified that a district court retains the discretion to dismiss a relator’s complaint before or after discovery has begun, meaning that district courts are not required to permit discovery at the pleading stage.  Nevertheless, the Sedona decision is an about-face from precedent in the Eleventh Circuit, and many other circuits, where, historically, facts learned during discovery could not be used to circumvent Rule 9(b) by bolstering a relator’s factual allegations while a motion to dismiss was pending.  While the long-term effects of the decision remain to be seen, in the short term the decision may encourage relators to engage in early discovery in hopes of learning facts that they can use to survive otherwise meritorious motions to dismiss....

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