Temperature checks and symptom-based screenings to identify potential coronavirus cases are costly and ineffective, a study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found.
“Symptom-based screening programs are ineffective because of the nonspecific clinical presentation of COVID-19 and asymptomatic cases,” the CDC wrote. “Passenger entry screening was resource-intensive with low yield of laboratory-diagnosed COVID-19 cases.”
The CDC conducted a screening program for air passengers arriving from countries experiencing surges in the coronavirus between Jan. 17 and Sept. 13. The program involved taking temperatures and monitoring for coughing, shortness of breath, and other coronavirus-related symptoms. After screening more than 760,000 individuals, only 35 passengers were told to get tested for COVID-19.
Of that group, nine tested positive, a success rate of roughly one coronavirus case per 85,000 passengers, CNN reported.
The study outlined a number of possible reasons why symptom-based screening led to so few coronavirus cases being identified. The CDC speculated that so many people choosing not to fly might have resulted in “an overall low COVID-19 prevalence in travelers.” The CDC also said that the two-week incubation period, asymptomatic cases, and travelers “who might deny symptoms or take steps to avoid detection of illness” by taking cough suppressants could also have contributed to the small number of coronavirus cases detected by symptom-based screening.
The CDC only shared contact data with state health departments for roughly two-thirds of screened travelers, so nearly one-third of all screened travelers would not have been included in the CDC’s statistics if they later tested positive for COVID-19.
More effective at reducing the spread of the coronavirus, the CDC wrote, was a combination of following already established guidelines such as wearing masks and remaining socially distant while on flights and making travelers produce proof of a negative coronavirus test within 72 hours of the flight. Post-arrival testing and quarantining could also be effective.
The United States is experiencing the largest surge in coronavirus cases so far. At more than 140,000 cases reported on Wednesday, the U.S. is reporting double the number of cases it reported during its July peak, when it reported 73,000 cases in a single day. While part of that dramatic increase in cases is due to significant increases in coronavirus testing across the country, the national positivity rate is more than 8% and trending up, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. States across the country are reimposing restrictions in an effort to curb the spread.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the CDC for further comment.
