To combat the spread of the new omicron COVID-19 variant, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are tightening testing requirements for international travelers.
Currently, air travelers to the United States who haven’t recently recovered from the virus – including U.S. citizens – must take a negative viral test before boarding their flight, with fully vaccinated travelers required to take it no more than three days before departure. But the CDC said Tuesday that it is “working to modify” the global testing order to give all international air travelers just one day to take a pre-departure test, as first reported by the Washington Post.
“This strengthens already robust protocols in place for international travel,” the CDC said in a statement.
CDC director Rochelle Walensky said during an earlier Tuesday press conference that the CDC was “evaluating how to make international travel as safe as possible,” which could mean shortening the pre-departure testing window or adding additional post-arrival testing and a self-quarantine period.
The agency says it continues to recommend all travelers get a COVID-19 viral test three to five days after arrival, and that any unvaccinated travelers should quarantine upon arrival.
The U.S. is also working to stem the spread of the virus with new travel bans against eight countries that went into effect Monday. The omicron variant has not yet been detectedin the U.S.
