Japan opens airport coronavirus test lab for departing travellers

[snoop1130]

Japan opens airport coronavirus test lab for departing travellers

 

A medical worker wearing a protective suit conducts a simulation for a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test at newly-opened Narita International Airport PCR Center operated by Nippon Medical School Foundation, a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) testing facility aimed at outbound travelers who need proof that they do not have the virus before arriving at their destination, at Narita International Airport in Narita, east of Tokyo, Japan November 2, 2020. REUTERS/Issei Kato

 

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's largest airport opened a novel coronavirus testing facility on Monday as it takes steps to reopen international travel that has been largely grounded for months by the pandemic.

 

The Narita International Airport PCR Center is aimed at outbound travellers who need proof that they are virus-free when they arrive at their destinations.

 

Japan on Friday eased travel curbs for nine Asian countries and regions.

 

Narita is one of two international hubs serving the Greater Tokyo area.

 

The testing lab, run by the Nippon Medical School Foundation, is the first at an airport in Japan and can deliver results in six hours, though it expects to get that down to two by the end of the month.

 

The tests are not covered by insurance and can cost as much as 46,500 yen ($444).

 

Japan's travel curbs to battle the pandemic have been stringent, with an effective ban on entry by tourists and visa-holders from more than 150 countries before a phased relaxation of the rules began in September.

 

Travellers arriving in Japan are required to undergo a coronavirus test, with three international airports having the capacity to carry out about 10,000 a day.

 

With about 100,000 cases and 1,773 fatalities, Japan has weathered the pandemic better than many major economies.

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-11-02

 

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[bkk6060]

The problem is what are they doing prior to the test?

I bet they are not totally isolated.

Are they interacting in lounges, gates, food halls then getting the test?

If someone tests positive then what?  Shut down the entire airport as it may have been spread to others along the way?

[scorecard]

12 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

The problem is what are they doing prior to the test?

I bet they are not totally isolated.

Are they interacting in lounges, gates, food halls then getting the test?

If someone tests positive then what?  Shut down the entire airport as it may have been spread to others along the way?

 

Some destination countries might accept the 'negative' report from the test at the departure location to allow the traveler to enter.

 

Other countries may well say they have their own regulations which are fixed and they don't make entry/quarantine decisions from tests conducted at the departure airport. 

 

However maybe in time such testing could gain more universal acceptance if combined with other factors.

 

 

[Credo]

13 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

The problem is what are they doing prior to the test?

I bet they are not totally isolated.

Are they interacting in lounges, gates, food halls then getting the test?

If someone tests positive then what?  Shut down the entire airport as it may have been spread to others along the way?

There is some comfort in getting on a plane when you know that no one is actively contagious.  

[abonsa]

20 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

The tests are not covered by insurance and can cost as much as 46,500 yen ($444).

 

 

5555555555555555555555555555555555555+

 

a test that they buy for $20 from the manufacturer...

 

Wish the worst to this world controleld by idiots and cheaters / scammers.

 

 

[bodga]

No way Im travelling anywhere until this nose ram raiding stops! Already told my Mother if she dies I aint coming back and a friend will sort out her estate.

[abonsa]

38 minutes ago, bodga said:

No way Im travelling anywhere until this nose ram raiding stops! Already told my Mother if she dies I aint coming back and a friend will sort out her estate.

 

 

 

same here, anyway mother is too idiot to live in islamized europe, so she deserves to die alone.

 

[UbonEagle]

Great work Japan who clearly see the need to get international travel moving again.

While this will just form part of an overall strategy, it Isa good commonsense measure.

For all the covid doomsdayers out there, don't waste your breath complaining just stay home for the next few years