Democratic Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York announced on MSNBC that British Airways and Delta Airlines to include passengers flying to New York State in testing for the new variant of the coronavirus that is sweeping through the United Kingdom.

According to the BBC, more than 40 countries have banned travelers from the UK, where an emerging, highly infectious strain of the coronavirus has been identified.  More than 140 countries are now requiring mandatory coronavirus testing for people who have been in the UK in previous weeks before they can enter the nation.

Cuomo cited the inaction of the Trump administration in his call to mandate testing for international travelers coming into the United States.  He noted that three airlines are the primary international carriers bringing passengers into New York airports:  British Airways, Delta Airlines and Virgin Atlantic.  Cuomo noted he has not heard back from Virgin about his testing request.

In the interview on “MSNBC Live,” Cuomo noted that the initial wave of the coronavirus that devastated New York, New Jersey and surrounding states came from Europe, not China.  While lame duck president Trump has boasted about banning travel from China (in a partial ban) early in the pandemic, it took him more than one month to make any travel restrictions from Europe.  When he announced a European travel ban, he did it in such a haphazard manner it pushed large volumes of people to return immediately to the US, primarily through New York and New Jersey airports.

Trump has been silent about the new strain of the virus, which is estimated to be 70% more contagious than previously known strains.