Pandemic-era border policy expected to end in late May

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expected to end the use of Title 42, a pandemic-era public health policy used by both the Trump and Biden administrations to rapidly expel migrants at the border, by late May, according to multiple reports.

Why it matters: U.S. officials have been bracing for the policy's end, which could fuel already rising numbers at the border. The government has readied a sweeping contingency plan, preparing for a worst-case scenario of up to 18,000 migrants being taken into custody each day, Homeland Security officials told reporters Tuesday.

What they're saying: The CDC cited the decreased risk that migrants would contract or spread COVID-19 in detention facilities, according to the Wall Street Journal. The delay in ending the policy until May 23 provided DHS more time to prepare.

"We are finalizing our current assessment and will release more information later this week," CDC spokesperson Kristen Nordlund told Axios.

By the numbers: Border Patrol chief Raul Ortiz said Tuesday at a conference in San Antonio that they expect migrant apprehensions to reach 1 million in the coming days — just halfway through the fiscal year.