Aviation industry urges Biden to back COVID-19 health credentials

FILE PHOTO: Travelers wearing protective face masks to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) reclaim their luggage at the airport in Denver, Colorado, U.S., November 24, 2020. REUTERS/Kevin Mohatt/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Major U.S. aviation, travel and aerospace groups on Monday joined airline unions in urging the Biden administration to help establish temporary COVID-19 health credentials to boost travel, which has been hard-hit by the coronavirus pandemic.

In a letter to the White House COVID-19 recovery coordinator Jeff Zients, trade group Airlines for America, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the U.S. Travel Association urged the administration to work with industry to “quickly develop uniform, targeted federal guidance for temporary COVID-19 health credentials (CHC) covering both tests and vaccinations.”

The groups also said “COVID-19 vaccines should not be a requirement for domestic or international travel.”

The White House did not immediately comment.

Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chris Reese

source: reuters.com