US to toughen coronavirus testing requirements for travellers amid Omicron
- US to insist all air travellers be tested for coronavirus within one day of boarding flights, instead of current three days, regardless of vaccine status
- Also under consideration are tighter post-arrival testing requirements or even self-quarantines, as President Joe Biden vows to ‘fight Covid-19 … with detailed strategy’
The Biden administration is moving to toughen testing requirements for international travellers to the US, including both vaccinated and unvaccinated people, amid the spread of the new Omicron variant of the coronavirus.
The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention announced in a statement on Tuesday that it was working towards requiring that all air travellers to the US be tested for Covid-19 within one day before boarding their flight. Currently those who are fully vaccinated can present a test taken within three days of boarding.
“CDC is working to modify the current Global Testing Order for travel as we learn more about the Omicron variant; a revised order would shorten the timeline for required testing for all international air travellers to one day before departure to the United States,” the agency said.
“CDC is evaluating how to make international travel as safe as possible, including pre-departure testing closer to the time of flight and considerations around additional post-arrival testing and self-quarantines,” CDC director Dr Rochelle Walensky said on Tuesday.
The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the administration’s plans before the announcement, said options under consideration also include post-arrival testing requirements or even self-quarantines.