US drops Covid test rule for travellers from China
- The requirements – put in place amid a surge in infections in China – have now been lifted as the number of cases has fallen
- US health officials had previously expressed concerns that their Chinese counterparts were not being truthful about the true number of infections and deaths
A requirement that travellers to the US from China present a negative Covid-19 test before boarding their flights expired on Friday after more than two months as cases in China have fallen.
The restrictions were put in place December 28 and took effect on January 5 amid a surge in infections in China after the nation sharply eased pandemic restrictions and as US health officials expressed concerns that their Chinese counterparts were not being truthful to the world about the true number of infections and deaths.
The requirement from the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention expired for flights leaving after 3pm Eastern time on Friday.
When the restriction was imposed, US officials also said it was necessary to protect US citizens and communities because there was a lack of transparency from the Chinese government about the size of the surge or the variants that were circulating within China.
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Hong Kong to scrap Covid mask mandate for indoors, outdoors after 3 years of pandemic
The rules imposed in January require travellers to the US from China, Hong Kong and Macau to take a Covid-19 test no more than two days before travel and provide a negative test before boarding their flight.