Travel does not increase the risk to general populations, with very few exceptions, some medical experts say, as the new pandemic variant Omicron is present in all parts of the world.
A recently published study by Oxera and Edge Health demonstrated the extremely limited impact of travel restrictions on controlling the spread of Omicron.
Although the study was specific to the United Kingdom, it found that if the UK’s extra measures with respect to Omicron had been in place from the beginning of November 2021 (prior to the identification of the variant), the peak of the Omicron wave would have been delayed by just five days with 3% fewer cases.
The absence of any testing measures for travellers would have seen the Omicron wave peak seven days earlier with an overall 8% increase in cases.
Now that Omicron is highly prevalent in the UK and elsewhere in the world, if all travel testing requirements were removed there would be no impact on Omicron case numbers or hospitalisations.
Therefore, experts say there is mounting scientific evidence and opinion opposing the targeting of travellers with restrictions and country bans to control the spread of Covid-19.
The measures have not worked, they insist citing the experience with the Omicron variant.
A research by the Migration Policy Institute has counted more than 100,000 travel measures around the world that create complexity for passengers, airlines and governments to manage.
The global body of major airlines – the International Air Transport Association (IATA) wants governments to accelerate relaxation of travel restrictions as Covid-19 continues to evolve from the pandemic to endemic stage.
IATA called for removing all travel barriers (including quarantine and testing) for those fully vaccinated with a WHO-approved vaccine, enabling quarantine-free travel for non-vaccinated travellers with a negative pre-departure antigen test result, removing travel bans, and accelerating the easing of travel restrictions in recognition that travellers pose no greater risk for Covid-19 spread than already exists in the general population.
“The billions spent testing travellers would be far more effective if allocated to vaccine distribution or strengthening healthcare systems,” noted Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.
With respect to travel bans, the WHO Emergency Committee recently confirmed their recommendation to “Lift or ease international traffic bans as they do not provide added value and continue to contribute to the economic and social stress experienced by countries around the world.
“The failure of travel restrictions introduced after the detection and reporting of Omicron variant to limit international spread of Omicron demonstrates the ineffectiveness of such measures over time.”
Many public health experts believe Covid-19 will become an endemic condition over the next few months.
WHO and some other leading experts say humankind now has the tools (including vaccination, therapeutics and public safety measures) to live and travel with, bolstered by growing population immunity.
They advise shifting policy focus from an individual’s health status towards policies focusing on population-wide protection.
Therefore, it is important that governments and the travel industry are well-prepared for the transition and ready to remove the burden of measures that disrupt travel.