MONTEGO BAY, St James — The Caribbean Hotel and Tourist Association (CHTA) is hoping that increases in the volume of travellers to the region will help drive down the cost of COVID-19 tests, a vital part of the measures being used to keep tourists and employees safe from the novel coronavirus.

In the meantime the CHTA will continue to lobby for price reductions, says President Nicola Madden-Grieg.

“We have been consistently working with the local partners to drive down the cost of testing. I think when we started, a PCR test was in the region of US$200. We have destinations that have tests as low as US$75 and I think some are even lower. So, it’s an ongoing process,” she said. “The CHTA is committed to working with our partners in destinations, and with the private sector that is offering this testing, to continue to drive down the price of testing. And, of course, as volumes increase and people are travelling, then the costs and economies of scale [will] continue to kick in, so we would see those prices coming down. We are committed to working to continue to make that happen, not only for visitors, but also our local population.”

She was speaking last Wednesday during a CHTA briefing on expectations for the winter tourist season. Later that evening, Jamaica’s Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton announced that the country will soon receive 150,000 self-administered test kits, which will be provided free of cost.

The cost of tests has long been an issue within the tourism sector and the wider economy. For countries and individual properties looking for an edge, they provide free or discounted tests for visitors and make the process as convenient as possible.

“A lot of the resorts throughout the Caribbean have done on-site concierge testing, working with third-party providers that have been approved by their ministries of health and ensuring that it’s a convenient way for visitors to get tested. Others have near-site facilities that also make it easy for persons to get tested,” said Madden-Grieg.

Tourism players have had to adapt and adjust each time source countries change their requirements.

“A lot of what we see being offered is for our visitors to be able to actually book their test prior to departure so that they can do it online; [they are able to] select their time and day for their testing at the property or at the site. And this is really just trying to make it as convenient as possible for visitors to test, especially with the US recently announcing moving from a 72-hour to a 24-hour turnaround. Based on our assessment of all our destinations, most — if not all — have been able to pivot and offer those services quite well,” said Madden-Grieg.