US COVID test requirement for UK travelers should extend to other nations - US official

A senior US public health official on Tuesday said the coronavirus testing the US requires for travelers from Britain should probably be extended to other countries as well. “I think that probably should be extended to other countries,” US Assistant Secretary for Health Brett Giroir said. The US government on Monday began requiring all airline passengers arriving from the United Kingdom - including US citizens - to test negative for COVID-19 within 72 hours of departure, amid concerns about a new coronavirus variant that may be more transmissible. The decision was a turnaround after the Trump administration had told US airlines it was not planning to require testing for arriving UK passengers. The administration is holding some discussions with US airlines about the possibility of expanding testing regimes, but no decisions have been made, officials said. United Airlines sent a memo to President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team on Tuesday calling for a White House task force to restore air travel safely and arguing for “passenger testing as an alternative to travel restrictions.” The memo, obtained by Reuters, says “by advancing safe alternatives to travel restrictions, the White House Task Force would help restore US global leadership in public health while re-establishing critical linkages between economies, communities, businesses and families around the globe.”<br/>