Indonesia to mandate PCR testing for all holiday season travel

Healthcare workers take swab samples from Covid-19 patients at the emergency room of the Cengkareng Regional General Hospital in Jakarta on June 23, 2021. -Antara

JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post/Asia News Network): The government is planning to make polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests mandatory for travelers across all modes of transportation, officials say, in a bid to prevent another wave of Covid-19 infections amid increasing public mobility ahead of the year-end holiday season.

Currently, negative PCR test results are required only for passengers traveling by air in Java and Bali, as well as in other regions with a high risk of Covid-19 transmission.