What do medical experts say about stopping Covid-19 testing on arrivals?

“Basically get the consensus from the units,” said a representative of the Department of Preventive Medicine.

In fact, this proposal has been made by experts before, when international tourists are returning to Vietnam after a “freezing” period because Covid-19.

According to Associate Professor Nguyen Lan Hieu, Director of Hanoi Medical University Hospital, the number of countries that require negative SARS-CoV-2 test results before entry is very small.

He analyzed two main reasons. Firstly, the epidemic has been in remission globally and the number of countries applying the Covid-19 zero policy is counting on the fingers. Second, scientifically, the value of the Covid-19 test is very limited at this stage. 24 hours with rapid test and 72 hours with PCR purely for reference only.

“That’s why the regulation that still needs to be tested for Covid-19 before entering Vietnam has made it difficult for people and international visitors to come to Vietnam,” Assoc.

The proposal to stop testing for Covid-19 before entry was made by the Ministry of Health after Vietnam stopped making medical declarations for people entering the country (from April 27) and stopped making domestic medical declarations (from April 30). /4).

Agreeing with the Ministry of Health, Associate Professor Do Van Dung, University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Ho Chi Minh City, said that the Covid-19 situation in Vietnam is stable and there is no risk of dangerous mutations in the world. Therefore, stopping testing with visitors is completely reasonable.

Master, Doctor Do Cao Van Anh, Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine analyzed, currently on the SIG classification of 4 strains of SARS-CoV-2, the worrying group of mutations only Omiron, no longer exists. Delta. The general opinion so far shows that Omicron only causes upper respiratory tract symptoms, not causing complications as much as the previous Delta strain.

In addition, our country’s Covid-19 vaccination has so far ensured effective coverage. According to data from the Ministry of Health, as of May 12, the whole country had injected 216,326,254 doses.

In which, the injection dose for people aged 18 years and over is 196,811,060 doses, including 1st, 2nd, 3rd dose, supplementary dose, and booster dose. Children aged 12-17 have been vaccinated with 17,397,058 doses including doses 1 and 2. Notably, the group of children aged 5-11 have received 2,118,136 doses (1st dose).

“So, at this time, the Ministry of Health’s proposal to stop testing for Covid-19 before entry is suitable for the epidemic situation and the vaccination schedule, it’s not too late,” said Doctor Van Anh.

Previously, Associate Professor Nguyen Lan Hieu shared his experience at Changi Airport (Singapore) in the early days of May 2022. Some Vietnamese tourists, after waiting 3-4 hours, had to cancel their flight tickets from Singapore to Ho Chi Minh City at the last minute because they could not complete the quick test procedure at Changi airport.

The reason is that, according to Vietnam’s regulations, visitors need to have a negative test for Covid-19 by PCR method within 72 hours or 24 hours for rapid test. The above regulations have more or less made it difficult for visitors to enter Vietnam.

As of the end of March 2022, more than 50 countries and territories around the world have suspended the requirement of pre-entry testing for international visitors. Including the UK, Norway, Iceland, Canada, Peru, Maldives… Of course, many countries only apply to imported guests who have had enough vaccinations.

In Southeast Asia, Cambodia, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand are also gradually removing this regulation.

Linh Giao

Testing Covid-19 upon entry is making it difficult for people and international visitorsIt is necessary to stop the pre-entry test as soon as possible so that we can really return to normal life. Timely and appropriate policy application is the key to success in the Post-Covid-19 period in all countries.