Hawaii Lt. Gov. Josh Green, who has
spearheaded the testing program,
acknowledged the risks but said the plan will
give the islands a much-needed chance for
economic recovery.
“It’s important that people know we welcome
them as long as they’ve gotten their test,” Green
said, adding that wearing a mask in public is still
Hawaii law.
Green, an emergency room doctor who recently
recovered from COVID-19, said calls for testing
at Hawaii’s airports don’t take into account
capacity or cost. Even if the state could test all
visitors, people wouldn’t get their results right
away, he added.
“If we were to test everybody that came, we
would have to have 8,000 tests” per day, Green
said, estimating the number of visitors he thinks
will travel to Hawaii at the program’s start. The
state currently has about 4,000 tests available
each day for residents and visitors.
As part of the plan, Hawaii is partnering
with several U.S. mainland pharmacies
and airlines for testing. Travelers will load
their information onto a state website and
mobile app that officials will use to track
incoming passengers.
Green said travelers must get the correct type
of coronavirus screening — a nucleic acid
amplification test — and suggests people work
with designated companies.
He has also proposed implementing a voluntary
surveillance testing program that would screen
a percentage of arriving passengers who are in
high-risk groups.