Rep. Higgins pressuring U.S. officials to take action to reopen U.S.-Canada border WKBW and last updated 2021-05-01 09:05:27-04 BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) â Rep. Brian Higgins (N.Y.-26) is pressuring the Department of Homeland Security to take action to reopen the United States-Canada border to non-essential travel. The border is closed to non-essential travel until May 21 and has been closed for over a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. âWe have been dealing with coronavirus, first SARS, then MERS, now COVID-19, for 18 years now and we could see variants for years to come," Rep. Higgins said. "People living on either side of the U.S. â Canada border have already lost a year of time with their loved ones and they should not have to wait one more day. The U.S. can and should take immediate action to allow family members to be together again.â