Officials told reporters that starting Jan. 5, all air passengers age 2 and older will need a negative test result. Two days before departure from China, Hong Kong or Macau.
Washington: The United States will impose mandatory COVID-19 tests on travelers from China. US health officials said on Wednesday, joining India, Italy, Japan and Taiwan in adopting new measures. Following Beijing’s decision to lift its strict zero-covid policy.
Officials told reporters that starting Jan. 5, all air passengers age 2 and older will need. Anegative test result two days before departure from China, Hong Kong or Macau.
Passengers who test positive more than 10 days before a flight can provide recovery documentation. Instead a negative test result, federal officials said.
In a sudden shift in policy, China this month began dismantling the world’s strictest COVID regime of lockdowns and widespread. Testing, putting its battered economy on track to reopen next year.
According to some international health experts, the lifting of restrictions. After massive protests against them means that COVID. Is spreading out of control and infecting millions of people a day.
Beijing has faced international criticism that its official COVID data. And its death toll are disproportionate to the scale of its outbreak.
Some global health experts say the virus could infect 1 million people a day. And international modeling groups predict China could experience 2 million or more deaths.
Earlier this week, US officials cited a “lack of transparent. Anformation” from China, a persistent Washington complaint. About China’s handling of the pandemic, as a reason to consider its own travel ban.
The US and China’s approaches to combating Covid were different throughout the pandemic.
High infection rates in the U.S. early in the pandemic have given Beijing room to argue that the strict COVID prevention model has saved lives.
China has struggled to vaccinate its aging population and has yet to approve foreign mRNA vaccines. Its vaccination rate is above 90% but has fallen to 57.9% for adults who have had a booster. Shot and 42.3% for people aged 80 and over, according to Chinese government data last week.
Nine developed Covid vaccines are approved for use in the country. But none have been updated to target the infectious Omicron variant.
