Traveling to US? Be ready with COVID-19 negative report
What's the story
Anyone flying to the United States will soon need to show proof of a negative test for COVID-19, health officials have announced.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had announced a similar notice late last month for passengers coming from the United Kingdom.
More than 22 million cases of COVID-19 have been reported to date in the country, including more than 375,000 deaths.
COVID-19 test
Travelers should produce the test report in writing
The order will take effect from January 26. Passengers should get a COVID-19 test done within three days before the departure date and provide written proof of the test result to the airline. They can also provide documentation that they had the infection in the past and recovered.
Airlines have been ordered to stop passengers from boarding if they don't have the aforementioned documents.
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Travel can become safer with testing combined with everyday precautions
"Testing does not eliminate all risk," CDC Director Robert R Redfield said. "But when combined with a period of staying home and everyday precautions like wearing masks and social distancing, it can make travel safer by reducing spread on planes, in airports," he added.
Airfare
India-US airfares break all records
The new measures have been designed to try and prevent travelers from bringing in newer forms of the virus into the US.
Notably, airfares from India to the US are at an all-time high. The cheapest one-way fare this month from cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru to places such as New York and San Francisco starts at over Rs. 1 lakh.