US loosens restrictions on flights from UK and EU
British travellers still not able to visit, but it may presage the opening up of America
Six months after the US imposed a ban on non-American passengers flying in from the UK and European Union, hopes are rising that the presidential proclamation effectively prohibiting travel may soon be eased.
At present, anyone who has been in a supposedly high-risk location such as the UK, Ireland or Continental Europe must land at one of 15 designated airports.
They also face “enhanced entry health screening”.
But the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) now says the US government is “taking a new approach to help keep international air passengers healthy”.
The organisation says it hopes to “develop a potential testing framework with international partners” – something that the airline industry has been demanding for months.
The CDC has concluded “symptom-based screening has limited effectiveness”. It says: “Transmission of the virus may occur from passengers who have no symptoms or who have not yet developed symptoms of infection.
“Therefore, CDC is shifting its strategy and prioritising other public health measures to reduce the risk of travel-related disease transmission.”
The health authorities will focus on “the continuum of travel and the individual passenger,” with an emphasis on “pre-departure and post-arrival education”.
Passengers will be invited to supply contact information online “to avoid long lines, crowding and delays associated with manual data collection”.
The CDC recommends a form of quarantine for people arriving from high-risk destinations, involving “staying home to the extent possible for 14 days”.
The move will affect only American citizens and residents initially, but the proposals for testing indicate a willingness to work with other countries and presumably allow their travellers to be admitted to the US.