CDC Issues Level 4 Travel Health Notice for India Due to Surge in COVID-19 Infections
- The national public health agency says even fully vaccinated travelers may be at risk and should avoid all travel to the country.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a level 4 travel health notice for India due to the surge in COVID-19 infections in the country. “Because of the current situation in India, even fully vaccinated travelers may be at risk for getting and spreading COVID-19 variants and should avoid all travel to India,” the CDC stated on April 22.
And U.S citizens “who must travel to India are strongly urged to get fully vaccinated before travel and continue to take personal health safety measures to protect themselves, including practicing social or physical distancing, cleaning hands with soap/hand sanitizer, wearing masks, and avoiding crowded areas with poor ventilation.”
The CDC also recommends that U.S. citizens get flu shots to better protect themselves from a major flu outbreak and reduce the need to access the local health system at this time.
Earlier on April 20, the CDC had issued travel recommendations for fully vaccinated travelers. “If you are fully vaccinated, then do not have to get tested before leaving the United States, unless your destination requires it and you do not have to self-quarantine after you arrive in the United States.”
According to the CDC, all air passengers coming to the U.S., including U.S. citizens and fully vaccinated people, are required to have a negative COVID-19 test result no more than 3 days before travel or documentation of recovery from COVID-19 in the past 3 months before they board a flight to the country.
The United Kingdom has already added India to its travel “red list” on a precautionary basis after reporting 103 cases of a coronavirus variant first identified in India.