Hawaii County Mayor Mitch Roth has called for pre-travel testing to be reinstated due to a worrying surge in Covid-19 cases.
Roth asked Hawaii Gov. David Ige to bring back pre-departure testing from the US mainland regardless of vaccination status.
Currently, fully vaccinated travelers from the US can skip pre-travel testing and quarantine when they arrive in Hawaii.
Roth added that Hawaii Island hospitals are already near full capacity.
The government has been in tentative discussions about bringing back pre-travel testing as infection rates starting to rise fast earlier this month.
"After visiting all of our island’s three major hospitals this week, it has become abundantly clear that we need to take immediate action to slow the spread of Covid-19 and alleviate the mounting pressures on our hospitals," a spokesman for Roth said.
Other measures being considered in Hawaii includes beach and park closures and introducing a ‘health pass.’
