The European Union is locking down its borders, imposing a 30-day entry ban on nonessential travel for non-EU citizens to slow the spread of the coronavirus. German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced the measure Tuesday night, saying people in the member nations can still move freely between those countries. The ban went into effect immediately. While the primary goal is to contain the spread of the highly contagious coronavirus in both directions, officials also said it is aimed at reducing pressure on health systems. There are to the ban a handful of exceptions, which include, citizens of Norway, Switzerland, Great Britain, and Andorra, as well as third-country nationals with long term residence rights in an EU country.