As we enter the second year of the global pandemic, we become accustomed to certain changes in our daily lives. Dining in a restaurant can involve a tent and heat lamps, medical consultations are carried out using telemedicine applications and the days of wandering around a mall are long gone. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now has one more addition to the growing list of lifestyle changes: Starting on Tuesday, you must provide evidence of a negative COVID test before flying back to the U.S. from any international destination.
“If you plan to travel abroad, you will need to take the test no later than 3 days before traveling by plane to the United States (USA) and show the negative result to the airline before boarding the flight, or be prepared to show documentation of recovery “, says the new policy, which was posted on the CDC website on January 23.
As required by the new policy, airlines must refuse boarding to anyone who does not provide a negative COVID test result. This may well disrupt the travel plans of some, but it should help to minimize potential exposure for those who fly, as well as for the general public.
According David Cutler, MD, a family medicine physician at the Providence Saint John Health Center in Santa Monica, California, the new CDC policy has not arrived a moment ahead of time. As he explains, “COVID’s recently increased ability to move from person to person is making air travel and all activities more risky to contract this disease.”
Longer flights already pose a risk that experts consider incalculable at the moment. Anthony Fauci, MD, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), said in a recent interview that shorter flights can be safe due to the use of the HEPA filter for “modest flights”, but for long international flights, “all bets are off. “
“It is impossible to say how safe air travel can be,” agrees Cutler. “It is important to recognize that anyone around you can transmit COVID to you. And you can transmit it to others.”
If you need to fly, read on for some expert-approved tips on how to do it in the safest way possible. And for masks that you should not wear while flying or in any other situation, see The CDC warns against using these 6 face masks.
Just because you got a negative test does not necessarily mean that you are free. If you experience any of the typical symptoms of COVID, you should seriously consider delaying your flight – even if your test has not confirmed your case.
According to the MD Anderson Center at the University of Texas, rapid antigen tests are less accurate than PCR tests to detect the virus. And although the CDC does not require any specific testing, the three-day window means that most travelers will use rapid tests, which can deliver results in less than half an hour, instead of the two to five days it takes to get the results the PCR test.
“To some extent, you are sacrificing accuracy with speed. By their very nature, antigen-style tests are not as sensitive because they require more viruses to be positive,” explains the MD Anderson website. “Someone with a positive test for this type of test should be treated as infected with COVID-19, but a negative test is less reliable and may need to be confirmed.” And for more regular COVID updates, subscribe to our daily newsletter.
According to Cutler, the risk of flying is not limited to flight time. “The risk of air travel also includes the risks of transport to the airport,” along with the time spent navigating the lines at the airport and in the crowds, he says.
“It is impossible to measure the risk to which you may be exposed in these crowded and uncontrolled environments. That is why travel causes the transmission of COVID and one of the first steps in controlling the pandemic was to limit travel in these countries, which effectively reduced the number of cases and deaths, “explains Cutler. And to learn more about how COVID is spreading, see why you are more likely to get COVID from someone who is doing it than from coughing.
Cutler also suggests being more careful if you need to use the bathroom while at the airport or on board your flight. These are high-traffic areas that often have questionable ventilation, and while most airports have stepped up their cleaning regimes in the midst of the pandemic, bathrooms can still pose a greater threat to travelers.
If you use the bathroom, be sure to use your mask, limit what you touch using clean paper towels to operate taps and doors, and then wash and sanitize your hands thoroughly. And to start with, you don’t have to do anything anymore, check out The only thing you can stop doing to avoid COVID, says the CDC.
On board your flight, Cutler explains that your main concern should be to mitigate the risks of those who are closest to you. “Ventilation systems on commercial aircraft contain HEPA air filters that effectively remove almost all viral particles,” explains Cutler. “Several small studies have confirmed that most of the risk during the flight comes from the people immediately around you.”
Fortunately, you can reduce this risk by preparing it with the right equipment and optimizing ventilation. “This risk can be minimized with the use of an N95 mask and face shield. You should also turn on the air blower at the top to push as much clean air as possible, ”advises Cutler. And to learn more about the safety of the mask, know that if you are still doing this, your mask is not protecting you, says the study.