WEBVTT - Ready to Travel? Here's What to Know About Testing Before You Go

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<v Speaker 1>It's Monday, August thirty one. I'm Oscar Ramires from the

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<v Speaker 1>Daily Dive podcast in Los Angeles, and this is reopening America.

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<v Speaker 1>Are you getting ready to travel during the pandemic. There's

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<v Speaker 1>a lot to know about testing before you get out there.

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<v Speaker 1>Some places require proof of a negative test before you arrive,

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<v Speaker 1>and other locations require that you quarantine before you can

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<v Speaker 1>move freely. There's also the question of timing so you

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<v Speaker 1>can get a result in time. Natalie Compton, reporter at

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<v Speaker 1>the Washington Post, tells us what you need to know.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks for joining us, Natalie, thank you. We wanted to

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<v Speaker 1>talk about travel amid the coronavirus pandemic right now. Just

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<v Speaker 1>a very quick story. I had been planning a trip

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<v Speaker 1>for several months. I was gonna go to Hawaii for

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<v Speaker 1>vacation middle of September, and we kept watching all of

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<v Speaker 1>the rules changing. You know, you've got a quarantine for

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<v Speaker 1>fourteen days. I know a lot of states are doing

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<v Speaker 1>different rules like that. For a time, there was gonna

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<v Speaker 1>be a thing, you know, if you test seventy two

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<v Speaker 1>hours before test negative, you don't have to do the quarantine.

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<v Speaker 1>But rules kept changing so much. Unfortunately, I just had

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<v Speaker 1>to cancel the trip. There was not much I could do.

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<v Speaker 1>But Natalie, you wrote an article about everything we need

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<v Speaker 1>to know about getting tested before you travel and kind

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<v Speaker 1>of how do you time it out. You've got to

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<v Speaker 1>get that sweet spot going to where you figure out

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<v Speaker 1>you can get your results back before you go on

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<v Speaker 1>your trip, things like that. So tell us about getting

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<v Speaker 1>tested and traveling right now. I think, like everything with

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<v Speaker 1>the pandemic, this is a confusing topic that doesn't have

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<v Speaker 1>a really straightforward answer because getting a test is not

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<v Speaker 1>as easy as going and getting a flu shot right now,

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<v Speaker 1>right they are still figuring out how to treat coronavirus.

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<v Speaker 1>They're still coming out with new tests every day. In

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<v Speaker 1>some places, you can't get a test unless you are

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<v Speaker 1>sick or a doctor prescribes a test for you. So

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<v Speaker 1>it is something that the CDC supports getting a test

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<v Speaker 1>before you travel because it could reduce the risk of

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<v Speaker 1>spreading it if you go somewhere, or if you get

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<v Speaker 1>a test when you return, maybe you wouldn't have to

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<v Speaker 1>quarantine in your home state. But it's not always going

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<v Speaker 1>to be easy for travelers to do. So where do

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<v Speaker 1>we go to get our tests? I know there's a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of different options and all but some of them

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<v Speaker 1>are free testing sites, some of you have to pay for.

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<v Speaker 1>Where should we be looking to see where we can

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<v Speaker 1>actually get a test? So I spoke with Dr Lynn Chen,

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<v Speaker 1>who is an expert in the travel medicine world, and

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<v Speaker 1>she recommended that your first step should be to talk

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<v Speaker 1>to your primary care provider because the testing landscape is

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<v Speaker 1>so different depending on where you live. Your primary care

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<v Speaker 1>providers should know what the best options are for you,

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<v Speaker 1>and if that doesn't work for you, you should look

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<v Speaker 1>at both your city or your state health department website

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<v Speaker 1>because more often than not, they're going to have updated

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<v Speaker 1>list of where you can get tests. And there are

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<v Speaker 1>test sites popping up all over. A lot of fire

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<v Speaker 1>departments will have them. You can find them at haw spittles,

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<v Speaker 1>different travel clinics. There's a lot of different ousts, pharmacies

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<v Speaker 1>are doing them. So it comes down to what's available

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<v Speaker 1>near you. Can you get an appointment or is a

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<v Speaker 1>walk in available? And if you need one, maybe you

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<v Speaker 1>need a doctor's prescription to be able to get it done.

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<v Speaker 1>It really varies and the test that you want, you

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<v Speaker 1>want to get a diagnostic test. I know there's testing

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<v Speaker 1>for anybody's and all that, but you want that diagnostic

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<v Speaker 1>test to see if you had the virus at that moment. Basically,

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<v Speaker 1>right you want to see do I have the coronavirus

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<v Speaker 1>right now? Because I don't want to spread it as

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<v Speaker 1>I travel or if you're going to go see loved ones,

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<v Speaker 1>you obviously don't want to give it to your loved ones.

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<v Speaker 1>One thing that Dr Chen did note is that right now,

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<v Speaker 1>not all of the coronavirus tests are accurate. So you

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<v Speaker 1>may get the negative test results think I'm good to go,

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<v Speaker 1>but there is a chance that you got the test

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<v Speaker 1>too early or the test reveals a false result. So

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<v Speaker 1>it is something that you can take some comfort in

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<v Speaker 1>but know that you are It's not fool proof. It's

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<v Speaker 1>not now. This is probably the big one is the

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<v Speaker 1>timing of the test. And this is the one that

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<v Speaker 1>I was so nervous about because some of the rules are,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, seventy two hours before you travel and all,

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<v Speaker 1>and it's like, well, if I take my test here,

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<v Speaker 1>will I get my results by the time I'm flying away.

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<v Speaker 1>That was one of the big concerns. So that's the

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<v Speaker 1>timing of it is one of the most crucial parts

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<v Speaker 1>of it in your case going to a place like Hawaii,

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<v Speaker 1>are going to a place where you need to show

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<v Speaker 1>proof that you have a negative test. It can be

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<v Speaker 1>really tricky to plan getting the test back in time

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<v Speaker 1>because in a lot of places we're seeing delays in

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<v Speaker 1>return tests. So right now away to have less test

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<v Speaker 1>timing anxiety, Dr Chen said to try to plan this

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<v Speaker 1>out way ahead of time, and once you get your results,

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<v Speaker 1>then you have to deal with Okay, I had to

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<v Speaker 1>quarantine at home for a little longer than I expected.

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<v Speaker 1>That that's better than being denied your trip to a

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<v Speaker 1>place because you didn't get your test back in time.

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<v Speaker 1>But a lot of places are looking at a four

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<v Speaker 1>to five day return time and that is definitely not

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<v Speaker 1>the case everywhere. Though some people it takes twelve days

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<v Speaker 1>to get a result. Some days it could be two days,

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<v Speaker 1>so there's a lot of different things. But ask the

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<v Speaker 1>person where you're getting a test what the estimate should

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<v Speaker 1>be before you do this test, and try to have

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<v Speaker 1>loose travel plans in case you need do accommodate for

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<v Speaker 1>either a positive test results or a delayed test result

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<v Speaker 1>that could change your travel plans. Across your fingers at

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<v Speaker 1>that point, right there, and then and then, uh, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>testing before and after. Should you get tested upon your

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<v Speaker 1>return from your trip? I guess I would depend on

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<v Speaker 1>where you went. If you want to visit a small

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<v Speaker 1>group of family, maybe not so. But if you're doing

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<v Speaker 1>anything that's around a lot of people, you might want

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<v Speaker 1>to get tested when you come back. Absolutely. And I

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<v Speaker 1>spoke with a journalist who had gone on a road

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<v Speaker 1>trip across the country with his niece to drive her

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<v Speaker 1>to college, and he didn't get a test before he

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<v Speaker 1>left for that road trip. He got one at the

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<v Speaker 1>end of his sixth day trip before he could fly

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<v Speaker 1>back to his home state of Maine. Because if you

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<v Speaker 1>don't get that test result, he would have had to

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<v Speaker 1>do a fourteen day quarantine at his home. So to

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<v Speaker 1>avoid that, he got a COVID test on the back

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<v Speaker 1>end of his trip. But also, like you said, if

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<v Speaker 1>you were partaking in any quote unquote higher risk activity

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<v Speaker 1>while you're traveling, you might not want to bring it

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<v Speaker 1>home to your loved ones or your place of work.

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<v Speaker 1>So getting a test after your trip or at the

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<v Speaker 1>end of the trip can help in that case. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>and with all of this, you know a negative test

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<v Speaker 1>is not a free pass. You still got to be careful,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, wear your mask, avoid the big crowds like

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<v Speaker 1>you were just saying, and keep doing the social distancing.

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<v Speaker 1>You got to take care of yourself whenever you're traveling

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<v Speaker 1>outside of your bubble, so to speak. But these are

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<v Speaker 1>some good tips on what to look for when trying

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<v Speaker 1>to get tested before you're going to go out on

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<v Speaker 1>one of your trips. Natalie Compton, reporter at the Washington

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<v Speaker 1>Post Travel destination. By the way, thanks for joining us,

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<v Speaker 1>Thank you for having me. I'm Oscar Ramirez and this

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<v Speaker 1>has been reopening America. Don't forget the effort today's big

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<v Speaker 1>news stories. You can check me out on the Daily

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<v Speaker 1>Dive podcast every Monday through Fridays. So follow us on

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<v Speaker 1>I Heart Radio or wherever you get your podcasts.