Healthcare provider Healius and Flight Centre Travel Group have announced that they will be joining forces to keep travellers safe once tourism resumes.
Leading healthcare provider Healius Limited (HLS) has partnered with Flight Centre Travel Group (FLT), to provide travellers with what it says will be ‘easier access to COVID- 19-related travel testing solutions and reporting.’
Healius provides highly regarded pathology testing solutions and reporting services through its nationwide network of collection points and laboratories.
With its vast leisure and corporate travel customer base, Flight Centre Limited Travel Group will now become a strategic distribution partner of these pathology services, which are expected to be a key part of the governments’ travel reopening plans.
Tell me more…
Healius, through its pathology brands including Laverty, Dorevitch, QML, Western Diagnostic and Abbott, says it’s well placed to provide FCTG’s leisure and corporate customers streamlined and high-quality COVID-19 testing and reporting, whilst also supporting public health requirements.
“While this may appear an unlikely collaboration under normal circumstances, the challenging COVID-19 environment requires all businesses to think creatively.”
John McKechnie, Chief Executive Officer Pathology
“We are committed to serving the travel market and ensuring our services continue to evolve to support travellers, whilst also keeping our communities safe,” said John McKechnie, Chief Executive Officer Pathology.
“We are excited to add Flight Centre and its leisure and corporate travel brands as a marquee distribution partner in our network.”
Flight Centre Travel Group Australia managing director James Kavanagh said, “This innovative new partnership with Healius is one of the many ways FLT is assisting customers to get back into the skies safely.
“It gives our customers peace of mind and confidence, knowing they can easily get the right tests and reports that they need for their destination.”
James Kavanagh, Flight Centre Travel Group Australia managing director
“Healius is one of Australia’s leading pathology businesses and an excellent partner for us and our customers in this industry leading arrangement.”
Health passports
The Australian vaccines rollout has officially started, meaning that international travel could potentially be on the cards sooner than we had thought, but what will it look like post-COVID-19?
Will digital health passports be mandatory for all who wish to travel?
We’ve already seen airlines such as Emirates and Etihad bring in digital health passport requirements and apps such as the IATA travel pass for passengers to complete before boarding.
Air New Zealand also recently announced it will be trialling a new digital health wallet, linked to passengers passports, to help kickstart the global travel industry.
The Australian government hasn’t yet announced plans for use of a digital health passport. But tech such as goPassport, a locally-developed digital health passport, has been backed by the Australian Tourism Export Council.
Do you think Australia will bring in digital health passports? Do you think that we’ll require one to travel?
Let us know what you think, email editor@karryon.com.au.