CDC Adds 6 Travel Destinations to COVID-19 High Risk Category

As the situation with COVID-19 continues to change and develop, AllEars will be bringing you the latest relevant news that could affect a theme park visit.

The travel industry has been hit with many challenges since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

We recently reported that the BA.5 Omicron variant is now the most dominant subvariant of COVID-19 in the United States, which has led to an increase in cases and hospitalizations. As a result, we have also seen the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) adjust risk levels for travel destinations, and now they have made some additional changes.

According to CNN, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) just added more travel destinations to their “high” COVID-19 risk category. Not sure what that is? The CDC classifies travel destinations into different levels of “risk” according to current cases of COVID-19 in the area.

The level 3 “high” risk category is applied to locations with more than 100 cases per 100,000 residents within the last 28 days, and now six destinations have been added to this designation. The six “high” risk locations now include the following destinations:

Bangladesh
Bosnia and Herzegovina
El Salvador
Fiji
Honduras
Poland

As of July 25th, over 120 travel destinations are categorized as level 3 “high” risk, with no destinations currently at level 4. Some of the level 3 risk destinations include European countries such as France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the United Kingdom, and more.

Make sure you take a look at where your destination ranks

Other level 3 “high” risk destinations include countries such as Brazil, Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico, and more. The CDC recommends travelers be up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccinations before traveling to any of these locations, which includes two rounds of COVID-19 vaccinations as well as any boosters.

The CDC also designated five new locations to the level 2 “moderate” risk category, which applies to places with 50 to 100 new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents over the last 28 days. These new places include Equatorial Guinea, India, Moldova, Phillippines, and Togo.

COVID-19 health and safety signage in Disney World

The level 1 “low” risk category also had two locations added, including Angola and Comoros. This category is applied to destinations with 49 or fewer COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents over 28 days. Meanwhile, Dominica and Ethiopia were added to the “unknown” risk designation, which also includes locations such as Hungary, French Polynesia, Macau, and the Maldives.

CNN Medical Analyst Dr. Leana Wen said that we have transitioned into a new pandemic phase where it’s essentially up to individuals to determine their risk factors before traveling, such as transmission rates and medical needs. Wen advises also taking into account “what precautions are required and followed in the place that you’re going” along with what your plans would be in the area.

Currently, international travelers returning to the United States no longer have to provide a negative COVID-19 test to re-enter the country, but your destination may have different requirements or policies in place. Make sure you review the current COVID-19 policies in place in your destination country BEFORE you leave for your trip.

Keep following AllEars for more COVID-19 travel news.