Air Travelers to U.S. Will Be Required to Quarantine

The U.S. will soon require inbound international air travelers to quarantine upon arrival. The quarantine period will be in addition to already-announced COVID-19 testing. It’s just one component of an Executive Order that President Joe Biden signed during his first full day in office.

Undetermined Quarantine Period

The Executive Order does not specify a length for the quarantine period. It simply asks for a plan to implement the self-quarantine period. The length of quarantine would be based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendations. Currently, the CDC recommends either a 7-day or a 14-day quarantine period:

• 7-day quarantine — Get tested 3-5 days after travel. Stay home for the entire 7 days with a negative test result.
• 10-day quarantine — If you do not get tested after returning, stay home for 10 full days.

There’s a very good chance that the CDC will maintain these same guidelines going forward. But they may just as likely make changes. We’ll just have to wait and see.

COVID-19 Testing Requirements

The Trump Administration previously announced new rules to require COVID-19 tests from all international air travelers to the USA. That policy is still scheduled to take effect on January 26, 2021.

But the Biden Administration will potentially take it a step further. Within the next fourteen days, they may decide to require a specific type of COVID-19 test (PCR test?). Or they may require travelers to undergo another test just before their flight. That’s still to be determined. But as of January 26th, the U.S. will require inbound air travelers to provide a negative test in most cases.

Travelers Must Wear Masks

The centerpiece of Biden’s travel order requires travelers to wear face masks in airports and on public conveyance. That includes planes, trains, ferries, intercity buses, and local public transportation. The rule applies to domestic and travel to/from the United States.

This may not seem like anything new. After all, nearly all transportation companies have required the use of face coverings for some time. But it’s an about face from Trump Administration policy, where masks were at best a recommendation. The transportation companies ultimately made their own rules.

You can use your personal vehicle without a mask, of course. But nearly all other travel will require you to mask up.

Final Thoughts

President Biden has signed an Executive Order that requires air travelers coming into the U.S. to quarantine upon arrival. The order also requires COVID-19 testing for inbound international travelers, and a mask requirement for nearly all transportation.

There’s a lot to unpack with these new rules. We obviously don’t yet know how long the quarantine period will be. But the current CDC guidelines are probably close to what we can expect.

The Biden Administration may strengthen the pre-flight testing requirements. Experts consider the RT-PCR test to be more accurate than a rapid antigen test. Most countries require inbound travelers to submit results from a PCR test, and the United States could follow suit.

My only question is why travelers would need additional quarantine if they’ve already tested negative? We’ve discussed this before. Back in July, I argued that testing is more effective than quarantine. Admittedly, that was before new, highly transmissible strains of COVID-19 started spreading in various corners of the world.

But new quarantines may be too little, too late. By March, the CDC expects the highly transmissible U.K. strain to be the dominant strain on our shores. By adding quarantine on top of testing, the Administration is trying to add another layer of protection. But how effective will it be?

I don’t fully agree with the new policy, specifically as it applies to quarantine. Quarantines are hard to enforce, and should thus be applied judiciously.

But I love the mask mandate. And I can appreciate that the CDC and the Administration finally see eye-to-eye on this serious pandemic. That alone will help our nation deal with it more effectively.