The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has just unveiled more details of what international travellers have to do before arriving in the country when it reopens next Monday.
All passengers aged two and above will be required to take a Covid test, regardless of whether they are fully vaccinated or not, before boarding their flight to the US. Antigen or lateral flow tests will be accepted by US authorities.
Those opting to take a self or home test will be required to have the process monitored by a “telehealth service affiliated with the manufacturer of the test that provides real-time supervision remotely through an audio and video connection”.
“The telehealth provider must confirm your identity, observe the sample collection and testing procedures, confirm the test result, and issue a report that meets the requirements of CDC’s Order,” said the US health body.
Airlines will also have to be able to review and confirm the test result details before boarding through a paper or digital document, while this document must also be available to US border officials to review, if requested.
Fully vaccinated passengers must take a test no more than three days before departure to the US, while those who are not fully vaccinated will have to undergo a test within one day of their flight’s departure.
Testing provider Cignpost ExpressTest, which already offers monitored Covid tests at UK airports and in city centre locations, is planning to launch digitally monitored lateral flow tests “shortly”. Its current prices for lateral flow tests start at £35 or from £59 for a PCR test.
