Airlines and other companies involved in tourism are urging the White House to work out a plan over the next five weeks to encourage international travel and remove restrictions imposed at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

In a letter to the White House, more than two dozen groups say they would like people vaccinated against COVID-19 to be exempted from testing requirements before entering the United States.

They also want the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to say that vaccinated people can travel safely.

The groups say these and other steps will accelerate the recovery of the travel and aviation industries, which was devastated by a slump in travel during the pandemic.

US air traffic is already increasing. However, passenger traffic is still below 2019 levels.

Organizations calling for international restrictions to be relaxed include the main trading group of the country’s largest airlines, Airlines for America, the US Travel Association and the US Chamber of Commerce. Their goal is to have the government “work with us” on May 1st to lift years of restrictions on international travel.

The groups cited the recent decline in reported new cases, hospitalizations, and deaths related to COVID-19 in the United States. Nearly 45 million Americans, more than 13% of the population, have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to CDC figures.

“Now is the time to plan and plan a defined roadmap for reopening international travel,” they wrote in a letter to Jeffrey Zients, the Virus Response Coordinator at the White House.

The White House referred to remarks by Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the CDC director, who said the health authority was working on new guidelines for people who have been vaccinated, however, expressed concern about the recent surge in newly reported cases of coronavirus in many European countries.

“When we look at our European friends, we just don’t want to participate in this rapid surge in cases again and it is very likely that this could happen,” Walensky said on Monday. “We’re so close to vaccinating so many people … Now is not the time to travel.”

The aviation industry is hoping for the lifting of comprehensive travel restrictions between the US and Europe, China and other regions that former President Donald Trump imposed last spring to curb the spread of the virus. Most non-US citizens who have been to Europe are not allowed to enter the country.

The airlines have campaigned with the Biden government to take a leadership role in developing standards for so-called vaccination passports that will allow people to travel freely if they are vaccinated and pass a COVID-19 test. The European Union has proposed a digital health certificate, but the Biden government has said it will be left to the private sector.

Last year, the federal government approved $ 65 billion to help airlines meet most of their wages to keep employees, plus billions more in soft loans. Most recently, the $ 1.9 trillion aid package signed by President Joe Biden included $ 15 billion for airlines.