The Biden administration announced on Friday that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will begin to lift its requirement for travelers to test negative for Covid-19. According to a senior administration official and a US Centers For Disease Control and Prevention official.

The move, which CNN broadcaster was first to report, "will go into effect forair travelers at midnight on Sunday," the officials from the US said said. This is lifting the restrictions of the tests for vaccinated individuals visiting the US. Including Lateral Flow Tests and PCR test.

"The CDC is lifting the restriction that the travel industry had lobbied against for months after determining it was no longer necessary "based on the science and data," the senior administration official said.

The CDC will reassess its decision in 90 days and if officials decide they need to reinstate it, because of a concerning new variant, for example, will do so. The measure has been in place since January 2021.

The CDC went on to say "The Covid-19 pandemic has now shifted to a new phase, due to the widespread uptake of highly effective Covid-19 vaccines, the availability of effective therapeutics, and the accrual of high rates of vaccine- and infection-induced immunity at the population level in the United States. Each of these measures has contributed to lower risk of severe disease and death across the United States."

The travel industry, and some scientific experts, said the policy had been out of date for months.

Lawmakers, including Democrats, had also advocated for lifting the requirement in recent weeks.

Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto said, "I'm glad CDC suspended the burdensome coronavirus testing requirement for international travelers, and I'll continue to do all I can to support the strong recovery of our hospitality industry."

White House officials met last month with travel industry officials,asking the Biden administration to end its requirements that vaccinated international travelers take a coronavirus test and a lateral flow test before flying to the United States.

Airlines for America, a trade body said its members -- including American Airlines, United Airlines, Southwest Airlines and Delta Air Lines - all felt lifting requirements will increase visits to the US.

US Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow praised the decision.

"Prior to the pandemic, travel was one of our nation's largest industry exports. The lifting of this requirement will enable the industry to lead the way toward a broader US economic and jobs recovery," Dow said in a statement.

The industry has criticized the policy as out of date for months, and some medical experts have also questioned its utility.