The Biden administration is lifting the COVID-19 test requirement for international air travelers to take a day before their flights.
This decision eases one of the few remaining government mandates to restrict COVID-19 virus transmission, which was welcomed by the tourism industry and travelers. The mandate will expire at 12:01 a.m. EDT on Sunday, according to a senior administration official who requested anonymity.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found it was no longer essential, per AP News. Though, a senior Biden administration official said the CDC would review the decision in 90 days.
"If there is a need to reinstate a pre-departure testing requirement - including due to a new, concerning variant - CDC will not hesitate to act," the official noted, as per a report from CNBC.
Last year, the Biden administration implemented the testing requirement as part of a shift away from restrictions that barred nonessential travel from several countries, including the majority of Europe, China, Brazil, South Africa, India, and Iran, in favor of categorizing people based on the risk they present to others. It was accompanied by a requirement that non-immigrant foreign adults going to the United States be fully immunized, with just a few exceptions.
Fully vaccinated travelers may present evidence of a negative test within three days of travel, but those who had not been fully vaccinated had to show proof of a test done within one day of the flight.
The CDC has required travelers to test negative within one day before flying to the United States since December, although testing is not necessary for land border crossings.
Lifting of COVID-19 Test Requirement Lauded
Robert Isom, the CEO of American Airlines, said at a conference last week that the testing requirements were "depressing" for leisure and business travel.
The airlines noted that many Americans are avoiding overseas travel due to fears of testing positive and being trapped abroad, The Guardian reported.
According to Isom, testing is not required in 75% of the countries that American Airlines serves.
"We're really frustrated. And this is something that is damaging not only to US travel. It just doesn't make sense," Isom noted last week.
Earlier this year, travel groups said the COVID-19 testing requirement for travelers was obsolete due to the high vaccination rates and treatments for the disease in every state in the country.
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev. commented: "I'm glad CDC suspended the burdensome coronavirus testing requirement for international travelers, and I'll continue to do all I can to support the strong recovery of our hospitality industry."
Tourism Affected by COVID-19 Restrictions
Throughout the pandemic, the tourism industry struggled with both the Biden and Trump administrations over measures intended to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including a stringent ban on most international travelers to the United States, which was eventually repealed in November.
Separately, in April, a Trump-appointed federal court overturned a measure aimed at preventing the spread of COVID-19. the Biden administration's federal requirement that passengers wear masks on airlines and other types of public transportation. The Department of Justice has challenged the verdict.
Many other nations have relaxed their testing mandate for fully vaccinated passengers to boost tourism.
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