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International travelers will no longer submit for Covid-19 testing after the Biden administration drops the requirement for incoming air travelers.
The strict requirement was first imposed by the Trump administration and strengthened by the Biden administration. Inbound travelers were required to present a negative result before being allowed entry into the country.
Many travel agencies and airlines have long spoken against the requirement, saying that the tight airport requirements do not do well in their industry.
CEO of American Airlines, Robert Isom, has told the press that the requirement was “nonsensical,” and it frustrated most of the stakeholders of the travel industry.
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Meanwhile, the president of the U.S. Travel Association, Roger Dow, said, “The Biden administration is to be commended for this action, which will welcome back visitors from around the world and accelerate the recovery of the U.S. travel industry.”
“International inbound travel is vitally important to businesses and workers across the country who have struggled to regain losses from this valuable sector,” Dow added.
Many other executives and officials were glad by Biden’s move to abolish the requirement.
Mike Liptak, the vice president of the Travel Technology Association, said that the removal of the Covid testing upon entry would most likely aid in the recovery of the tourism sector.
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CEO of Airlines for America has also expressed their support for the decision, telling the Biden administration that they will move “forward to continuing to work with the Administration to prioritize the safety and wellbeing of the traveling public and to ensure that air travel policies are guided by science.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, however, has said that it will evaluate if the decision is effective.
“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,” an official of the CDC said.
