Travel

Tourists could need Covid-Free certificates to be able to travel after lockdown


TOURISTS could soon need certificates proving they don’t have coronavirus to be able to travel.

The Covid-free health documents would require holidaymakers to prove that they are not infected with the deadly virus.

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 Tourists may need to have documents proving they don't have coronavirus to enter the country
Tourists may need to have documents proving they don’t have coronavirus to enter the countryCredit: Splash News

The UK does not currently issue the documents, which would require the person to be tested for the antibodies.

According to Euro News Weekly, The Madrid Association of Hoteliers (AEHM) are looking into a ‘Covid-19 Free Hotel’ certification, which would guarantee both guests and staff don’t have the virus.

How this would work has not been explained, but guests of the hotel will likely have to be able to prove they do not have coronavirus to stay.

Many other countries banned travellers from entering the country if they didn’t have Covid-free documents, shortly before closing their borders.

Thailand ordered any non-residents last month to have proof from health authorities that they didn’t have the virus to be allowed to travel through, with India issuing similar strict regulations.

 Current checks in force include thermal scanners and bloods tests - it isn't clear how immunity passports would work
Current checks in force include thermal scanners and bloods tests – it isn’t clear how immunity passports would workCredit: EPA

The same measures could be re-introduced when lockdowns are slowly lifted.

While the doctors in the UK don’t offer Covid-free documents, another alternative being looked into are Immunity Passports, which would prove the holder has had coronavirus and no longer does.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock previously explained on Question Time: “When the science is good enough to understand the immunity that people have after having had the disease, then we are looking at introducing something like an immunity certificate or maybe a wristband that says ‘I’ve had it and I’m immune and I can’t pass it on and I’m highly unlikely to catch it’.

But fears about been raised about the validity of these – with little known about the virus, they may not be able to determine if the person could be infected again.

Claire Standley, assistant professor at Georgetown University’s Center for Global Health Science and Security, told France24 that not only could tests flag antibodies which are not related to coronavirus, but they aren’t “sufficiently accurate”.

She explained: “High false negative rates (lack of sensitivity) of the test mean that those currently available are not recommended for patient-level clinical diagnosis.”

Other measures for travellers are currently being trialled – for example, Emirates recently introduced a compulsory blood test for passengers boarding a flight, with plans to roll it out on other flights.

The test determines if the passenger has coronavirus in just 10 minutes, although the airline didn’t confirm if travellers would be banned from the flight if refusing the test.

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Germany is also looking into immunity passports, which could also help end lockdowns.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is planning on issuing immunity certificates as researchers have begun testing 100,000 people a day for the disease.

The researchers will use antibodies tests which can tell if someone has already had COVID-19 and issue documentation to people to confirm their status.

Matt Hancock outlines new coronavirus app that allows people to document symptoms and warn those around them





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