25 June 2020: “Imposing quarantine measures on arriving passengers keep countries in isolation and the travel and tourism sector in lockdown. Fortunately, there are policy alternatives that can reduce the risk of importing COVID-19 infections while still allowing for the resumption of travel and tourism that are vital to jumpstarting national economies. We are proposing a framework with layers of protection to keep sick people from traveling and to mitigate the risk of transmission should a traveller discover they were infected after arrival,” said Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s Director General and CEO.
Following this IATA has proposed a policy alternative to governments to avoid quarantine measures and at the same time follow a layered approach of measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 via air travel.
Some of the guidelines to be followed in this layered approach are –
1. Sick passengers should strictly avoid travelling. They should stay at home and prevent the spread of virus. Meanwhile airlines need to give booking flexibility to such passengers to adjust or change their travel plans.
2. Standardized contactless electronic declarations via government web portals or government mobile applications are recommended to for paperless travel and privacy protection.
3. Non-intrusive temperature checks can also play an important role.
4. Mandatory COVID-19 testing for passengers travelling from high risk countries preferably prior to air travel. The passengers must carry valid document proof clearly stating the result as COVID-19 negative.
5. Testing should be for active virus (polymerase chain reaction or PCR) rather than for antibodies or antigens.
6. Test data would need to be independently validated so as to be mutually recognized by governments and securely transmitted to the relevant authorities.
7. Universal implementation of the Take-Off guidelines published by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
8. Besides this contact tracing and reducing risk of transmission at destination are some of the other important measures that need to be followed.
“Safely restarting the economy is a priority. That includes travel and tourism. Quarantine measures may play a role in keeping people safe, but they will also keep many unemployed. The alternative is to reduce risks through a series of measures. Airlines are already offering flexibility so there is no incentive for sick or at-risk people to travel. Health declarations, screening and testing by governments will add extra layers of protection. And if someone travels while infected, we can reduce the risk of transmission with protocols to prevent the spread during travel or when at destination. And effective contact tracing can isolate those most at risk without major disruptions,” said de Juniac.
Besides mandatory quarantine measure at desired travel destinations would discourage tourists from travelling. A recent survey has showed that 83 per cent of travellers would not even consider traveling if quarantine measures were imposed on travellers at their destination.
There are some hurdles to being able to implement the full suite of measures. “Data transmission, required for health declarations, testing and tracing, raises privacy concerns. And mutually recognized standards would be needed for testing. Governments have a common interest in finding solutions. The rapid agreement by governments to ICAO’s Take-Off guidelines demonstrates that progress on complex issues is possible where there is the political will to do so,” said de Juniac.
“A layered approach to safety has made flying the safest way to travel while still enabling the system to function efficiently. That should be an inspirational framework to guide governments in protecting their citizens from the terrible risks of both the virus and joblessness. Quarantine is a lop-sided solution that protects one and absolutely fails at the other. We need government leadership to deliver a balanced protection,” said de Juniac.
