The United States will require from Jan. 26 all overseas travelers to provide proof of a negative coronavirus test result before they are permitted to board inbound flights, the government said Tuesday.
All travelers planning to fly to the United States are obliged to undergo a COVID-19 test three days or fewer before their U.S-bound flights depart, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.
Travelers will have to show documentation from their test to airlines or provide proof they have recovered from the respiratory disease.
If a passenger does not provide documentation of a negative test or recovery, or chooses not to submit to a test, the airline must not allow the passenger to board, according to the CDC.
The step will expand the current requirement introduced on Dec. 28 for travelers arriving from Britain, where a more transmissible variant of the novel coronavirus has spread.
U.S. health authorities recommend travelers undergo a test again three to five days after arriving and self-quarantine for seven days.
CDC Director Robert Redfield said in a statement testing does not eliminate all risk.
But, "when combined with a period of staying at home and everyday precautions like wearing masks and social distancing, (testing) can make travel safer, healthier, and more responsible by reducing spread on planes, in airports, and at destinations," he said.
The United States is the country that has been worst-hit by the coronavirus, with more than 22 million cases reported to date and over 380,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.
