NEW YORK (AP) – Anyone flying to the U.S. will soon need to show proof of a negative test for COVID-19, health officials announced on Tuesday.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention requirement expands on a similar one announced last month for passengers from the UK. The new order takes effect in two weeks.
COVID is already widespread in the United States, with more than 22 million cases reported to date, including more than 375,000 deaths. The new measures are aimed at preventing travelers from bringing new forms of the virus that, according to scientists, can spread more easily.
The CDC’s request applies to American citizens as well as foreign travelers. The agency said it postponed the effective date until January 26 to give airlines and travelers time to comply with the law.
International travel to the US has already been wiped out by the pandemic restrictions implemented last March, which banned most foreigners from Europe and elsewhere. Travel by foreigners to the US and Americans to international destinations in December fell 76% compared to the previous year, according to the commercial group Airlines for America.
The new restrictions require air passengers to take a COVID-19 test within three days of their flight to the U.S. and provide written proof of the test result to the airline. Travelers can also provide documentation that they have had the infection in the past and have recovered.
Airlines are obliged to prevent passengers from boarding if they have no proof of a negative test.
“Testing does not eliminate all risks,” said CDC director Robert R. Redfield in a statement. “But, when combined with a period of stay at home and daily precautions such as wearing masks and social distance, it can make travel safer, healthier and more responsible, reducing the spread on planes, airports and destinations.”
The CDC’s mandate is “a reasonable approach” to reduce the risk of new variants from abroad entering the United States, said Dr. Ashish Jha, dean of Brown University School of Public Health.
The recently identified version of the UK virus is likely to be “probably in all states or most states. It will not help, ”said Jha. So far, 10 states have notified 72 cases of the variant.
But the new order may stop or slow the spread of other new versions of the virus, such as one recently identified in South Africa.
“I can imagine that other countries will impose (pre-flight tests) on us,” he added.
Airlines have been lobbying for pre-flight tests to replace the widespread travel restrictions between the U.S. and the rest of the world. In some cases, they cause passengers to avoid quarantine after arrival by taking the test before the flight.
Testing “is the key to unlocking international borders and safely reopening global travel,” said Nicole Carriere, a spokeswoman for United Airlines, one of the top three U.S. airlines flying to Europe and Asia.
Others say the CDC’s request should not cause an immediate increase in international travel.
“People are being encouraged by their public health officials not to travel, even to the country,” said Henry Hartevedlt, travel analyst at Atmosphere Research Group.
He does not expect air travel to increase until summer, when more people have been vaccinated.
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Koenig reported from Dallas
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