The CDC has ended health screenings for arriving international travelers.
The screenings, which were put into effect early in the Covid-19 pandemic, had funneled arriving passengers from the U.K.; Ireland and most of the EU; Brazil; and China to 15 designated U.S. airports. The CDC ended the screenings Monday.
The U.S. continues to prohibit most entry from the U.K., most
continental European nations, China, Brazil, Ireland, the U.K. and Iran,
although exceptions are in place for permanent residents and U.S.
citizens.
"We now have a better understanding of Covid-19 transmission that indicates symptom-based screening has limited effectiveness because people with Covid-19 may have no symptoms or fever at the time of screening or only mild symptoms," the CDC said in a press release. "Transmission of the virus may occur from passengers who have no symptoms or who have not yet developed symptoms of infection."
The CDC said it will replace the screenings with a variety of mitigation strategies, including health education for passengers, robust illness response at airports and voluntary electronic collection of passenger information.
However, it is not taking the stronger measures required by numerous other countries, including mandatory quarantines or required pre- or post-arrival Covid-19 testing.
The CDC did say that is exploring the development of a potential testing framework with international partners, a move that the air travel industry is advocating for as a replacement to border closures and quarantine rules.
The removal of the health screenings comes months after many of the origin countries singled out for the screenings, such as China, have ceased to be Covid-19 hot spots.