CLEVELAND — It seems like just yesterday we were talking about the massive uptick in travel, airports across the country were packed with a record high number of people.
A week later, the Omicron variant is now the topic of discussion, and travelers at Cleveland Hopkins Airport are talking about it too.
"There are definitely concerns,” said Brad Stefanski. “I have a daughter at home and I’m going back to her. I want to make sure I do everything as safe as possible."
President Joe Biden said safety is the motive behind his new COVID travel guidelines.
Starting Monday at 12:01 a.m., all travelers heading into the U.S. from another country must test negative one day prior to their departure, the previous rules allowed inbound travelers to test up to three days before entering the country.
“It’s concerning whenever you travel,” said Callie Hopes. “I think any responsible person is thinking about how to protect themselves."
Your vaccination status will not make a difference in Biden’s new rule, meaning a fully-vaccinated American citizen heading back to the states is not exempt but any foreign national who travels to the U.S. must be fully vaccinated.
“I think it [testing requirements] should be strictly enforced for international travel,” said Toshiba Carter. “If everyone does that and wears their mask, I think everything would be okay."
Rocky River travel agent Leah Molinari said many of her clients already have questions about the variant.
“People are just letting me know they are going to wait and see for now, but if something changes then they are not comfortable traveling,” said Molinari. "A lot of these trips were postponed from 2020. If people can travel, especially the ones who are vaccinated, they’re ready to go."
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