Newark Airport, Others Will Test For Omicron COVID Variant

NEWARK, NJ — New Jersey is a “hub for international travel and commerce,” according to Gov. Phil Murphy. And at one of the state’s busiest transportation centers, Newark Liberty International Airport, testing for the latest coronavirus variant – omicron – will be available to help keep travelers safe, officials say.

In early November, joyful reunions took place across the U.S., including at Newark Airport, after more than 18 months of federal pandemic restrictions ended. Read More: Happy Reunions At Newark Airport, Others As U.S. Travel Ban Ends

Under the new rules, "fully vaccinated" residents of foreign countries are allowed to enter the U.S. if they can show their airline proof of vaccination and a negative coronavirus test taken within three days of travel. Children under the age of 18 are exempt from the vaccine requirement, but must show proof of a negative COVID-19 test.

U.S. residents who want to fly outside the country won't have to show proof of a vaccination. Unvaccinated travelers will have to show proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within one day, instead of three days if they've been vaccinated.

But with the rise of omicron, the U.S. has again rolled out travel bans for foreign residents of eight countries near where the variant was first reported: Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe.

More than 50 countries have implemented travel measures to guard against omicron as of Nov. 28, Reuters reported.

Airports across the U.S. are preparing for a big uptick in travel amid the holiday season, including beefing up their coronavirus precautions.

At Newark Airport and JFK Airport in New York City, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have set up a new, voluntary COVID testing pilot program with XpresCheck, PIX 11 News reported.

The XpresCheck facilities at Newark Airport were initially rolled out for airport workers only, but have since expanded to include passengers. They will offer testing that can detect the omicron variant, News 12 New Jersey reported.

According to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which runs Newark Airport, JFK and LaGuardia, its airports handled an estimated total of 7.6 million passengers in October, down 36 percent from pre-COVID volumes in October 2019.

But the number of people flying out of the three airports may be slowly ticking upwards again, the Port Authority noted: passenger volumes have increased 11 percent from September 2021.

"As our region is a hub for international travel and commerce, we must be ready now," Gov. Murphy said about the omicron variant during a news conference Monday afternoon. "The department of health is prepared to quickly identify omicron through both PCR testing and virus sequencing and protocols."

Murphy said he is concerned about flights from South Africa, which is one of the countries covered by the latest travel ban put in place by President Joe Biden.

"We're speaking to the White House," Murphy said. "It's something we're watching very closely. It's definitely a time to mindful of where you're going."

However, Murphy also cautioned residents not to get hysterical about the latest coronavirus variant.

"Are we taking this seriously? Are we sober about it? Are we going to look to make decisions based on the science and the data and the facts as they become known? Absolutely," Murphy said. "In the meantime, we strongly encourage folks to do the things that we know work."

• See related article: COVID Omicron Variant Prompts NJ Travel, Masking Changes

Some health officials and public health experts have cautioned that travel restrictions alone may not be effective in controlling the spread of infectious disease, NPR reported.

Others have called the bans "unethical."

"The travel bans are harsh examples of the unethical and, quite frankly, ridiculous decisions that continue to undermine our global unity in battling this pandemic," said Richard Marlink, director of the Rutgers Global Health Institute.

"For all the talk of following the science, what this amounts to is the opposite," Marlink said. "Banning travel from southern African countries when the omicron variant is already spreading here shows a total lack of evidence-based decision-making. And these restrictions could have a chilling effect on global collaboration and scientific transparency when it comes to releasing public health information, because national governments may not want to risk the potential economic and social consequences that could result from intrusive restrictions such as these travel bans."

This article contains reporting by Anthony Bellano, Patch staff

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