Hawaii Governor David Ige announced on Wednesday that travelers from out of state may bypass a 14-day quarantine requirement starting October 15, if they test negative for COVID-19.
Travelers will have to take the test within 72 hours before their flight arrives in the islands.
Ige said drug store operator CVS and healthcare provider Kaiser Permanente will conduct the tests as part of an agreement with the state.
Hawaii leaders are hopeful that pre-travel testing will encourage people to return to Hawaii in a way that keeps residents safe.
The state's Department of Health on Wednesday reported that they had an average of 118 cases per day for the past seven days, marking a significant drop from the seven-day daily average of 255 on August 28.
Tourism traffic to the state has plunged more than 90 percent since the pandemic began, forcing hundreds of hotels to close and pushing nearly one-quarter of the local workforce into joblessness.
In April, Hawaii had the third-worst unemployment rate in the U.S. after Nevada and Michigan.
<Photo: Yonhap News>
