U.S. to lift COVID test requirement for international air travel

It’s another departure for an American pandemic rule.

The U.S. will lift a requirement that international travelers flying into the U.S. receive negative coronavirus test results within a day before lift off, CNN reported Friday, a pandemic landmark reached after global COVID case counts fell sharply this spring.

The requirement is expected to end at midnight Sunday, CNN reported, citing an unnamed Biden administration official. The U.S. first implemented a COVID testing requirement for flights into the U.S. in January 2021.

The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Friday morning. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which ordered the current mandate for travelers 2 and older in December, deferred comment to the White House.