April 13, 2022, 10:32 PM WIBBy Jay Blackman, Josh Lederman and Carol E. Lee

The Biden administration is extending the mask mandate for travelers on airplanes, trains and other transit systems into May, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Wednesday.

The current requirement that all travelers wear face coverings was set to expire on April 18, but the Transportation Security Administration will now extend the requirement for an additional 15 days through May 3, the CDC announced.

"Since early April, there have been increases in the 7-day moving average of cases in the U.S.," the statement said. "In order to assess the potential impact the rise of cases has on severe disease, including hospitalizations and deaths, and health care system capacity, the CDC Order will remain in place at this time."

Airlines had begun to push the administration to let the mandate expire. Airlines have been left to enforce the masking requirements while increasingly more states and localities have dropped their requirements that people wear face coverings in public.