US expected to toughen testing requirement for travelers, other developments

US expected to toughen testing requirement for travelers after omicron: Latest COVID-19 updates The United States may toughen testing requirements for travelers as omicron is discovered in more countries. Latest COVID updates. YahooNews

To combat the spread of the new omicron COVID-19 variant, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is tightening testing requirements for international travelers.

Currently, air travelers to the United States who haven't recently recovered from the virus – including U.S. citizens – must have a negative viral test before boarding their flight. Fully vaccinated travelers are required to take tests no more than three days before departure.

But the CDC said Tuesday that it is "working to modify" the global testing order to give all international air travelers just one day to take a pre-departure test, as first reported by The Washington Post.

"This strengthens already robust protocols in place for international travel," the CDC said in a statement.

CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said during an earlier Tuesday news conference that the CDC was "evaluating how to make international travel as safe as possible," which could mean shortening the pre-departure testing window or adding additional post-arrival testing and a self-quarantine period.

The agency says it continues to recommend all travelers get a COVID-19 viral test three to five days after arrival, and that any unvaccinated travelers should quarantine upon arrival.

The U.S. is also working to stem the spread of the virus with new travel bans against eight countries that went into effect Monday. The omicron variant has not yet been detected in the U.S.

--226 omicron cases have been confirmed in at least 21 countries, including Britain, 11 European Union nations, Australia, Japan, Brazil, Canada and Israel.

-- Officials from Rochester Regional Health and the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York state have joined a growing list of hospitals across the U.S. and around the world warning that their facilities had reached full capacity and that emergency departments are stressed. In the Rochester area, hospital leaders said they were weighing whether they could continue performing elective procedures and surgeries. Dr. Michael Apostolakos, Chief Medical Officer for Strong Memorial and Highland Hospitals, said the majority of the COVID-19 patients requiring hospitalization were unvaccinated. ...