A health worker wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) holds a swab in her hand to conduct tests for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), after Italy has ordered COVID-19 antigen swabs and virus sequencing for all travellers coming from China, where cases are surging, at the Malpensa Airport in Milan, Italy, on December 29, 2022. REUTERS/Jennifer Lorenzini
Brussels: European health officials called screenings and restrictions on travelers from China unjustified.
Europeans have high levels of protection against Covid-19 and health systems on the continent are equipped to handle the current load of infections, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said in an emailed statement.
Beyond that, the variants circulating in China are already present in Europe and the potential for imported infections is low compared to the level of Covid transmission already happening in the EU, the center said.
The center commented after Italy found almost half of the passengers on two recent flights from China tested positive for Covid. It’s since said it will test all arrivals from the country.
So far, the European Commission has refrained from following Italy’s lead. Like the ECDC, it noted that omicron is already present in Europe and has "not significantly grown.”
"However, we remain vigilant and will be ready to use the emergency brake if necessary,” the commission added.
While travel measures can be justified at times - especially in the beginning of a pandemic or big outbreak - these restrictions can have unintended negative consequences over time, according to the ECDC.
Officials are nonetheless closely monitoring the situation in China and in regular contact with health officials there.
