NAM: Lifting of Testing Mandate Will Benefit U.S.
The Biden administration’s ending of the COVID-19 air travel predeparture testing requirement will help unclog supply chain bottlenecks and increase U.S. competitiveness, according to NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons.
What’s happening: Late last week, “the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that the U.S. requirement that travelers test negative for COVID-19 within a day before boarding a flight to the United States would be coming to an end,” according to a WSBTV.com article. “The mandate officially ended at 12:01 a.m. on Sunday.”
Why it matters: Timmons urged White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Ashish Jha last month to end the requirement, calling for the adoption of “policies and travel procedures that support and encourage global competitiveness, including steps to ensure a safe return to both business and leisure travel that facilitate economic recovery.”
- Following news of the mandate’s cancellation, Timmons tweeted, “Today’s action from @POTUS will directly support the U.S.-based operations and supply chains of global manufacturers.”
Other praise: “Roger Dow, president of the U.S. Travel Association, called lifting the testing rule ‘another huge step forward for the recovery of inbound air travel and the return of international travel to the United States,’” according to WSBTV.com.