The Tribune

THE United States’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has announced passengers entering the country no longer need to get tested or show documentation of recovery from COVID-19 in order to enter the US.

The CDC made the announcement on Friday.

“Today, CDC is announcing that the order requiring persons to show a negative COVID-19 test result or documentation of recovery from COVID-19 before boarding a flight to the United States, will be rescinded, effective on June 12, 2022 at 12:01AM ET,” the CDC read.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has now shifted to a new phase, due to the widespread uptake of highly effective COVID-19 vaccines, the availability of effective therapeutics, and the accrual of high rates of vaccine- and infection-induced immunity at the population level in the United States.

“Each of these measures has contributed to lower risk of severe disease and death across the United States. As a result, this requirement which was needed at an earlier stage in the pandemic may be withdrawn. CDC continues to recommend that those travellers boarding a flight to the US get tested for current infection with a viral test as close to the time of departure as possible (no more than three days) and not travel if they are sick.

“CDC continues to evaluate the latest science and state of the pandemic and will reassess the need for a testing requirement if the situation changes. CDC will communicate any updates publicly if and/or when they change.”

NBC News reported a senior White House official said the CDC “made its determination ‘based on the science and data that this requirement is no longer necessary at this time’.”

The American news outlet added: ‘“The CDC will do a reassessment of this decision in 90 days,” the official said, adding that if there is “a need to reinstate a pre-departure testing requirement, including due to a new, concerning variant, CDC will not hesitate to act.”

Baha Mar president Graeme Davis has said he wants the government to remove its COVID- 19 testing requirement for people entering The Bahamas.

Previously asked if the government would consider this, acting Prime Minister Chester Cooper responded: “We listened to our stakeholders but we make decisions that’s in the best interest of the Bahamian people. We make decisions that balance what’s good for tourism and the economy with the public health and safety of the Bahamian people.”

As for potential tightening of COVID measures, the Deputy Prime Minister maintained at the time that the government was satisfied with the country’s current protocols and said no additional changes will be made “until the science warrants us removing them”.