COVID-19: Regulator adds more countries to list of ‘riskiest places’ to travel

*The agency says consumers should be fully vaccinated if they are travelling to these places, and avoid travelling to locations designated with the ‘Level 4: COVID-19 Very High’

Gbenga Kayode | ConsumerConnect

As a number of variants of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) continue to disrupt normal life in several countries in the world, there are six more destinations the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is warning travellers they should avoid, whether they are vaccinated or unvaccinated.

ConsumerConnect learnt the most-travelled spot added to the CDC’s “Level 4: COVID-19 Very High” list is The Bahamas.

Historically, most of the nearly six million tourists who visit The Bahamas yearly come from the United States, agency report said.

International Air Travellers in Abuja, FCT

However, so far in August 2021, The Bahamas has recorded 2,625 COVID-19 cases, which is an increase of 20 percent since July.

The US health regulatory agency disclosed that joining The Bahamas on the list are its Caribbean neighbours Saint Maarten and Haiti, along with Morocco, Kosovo, and Lebanon.

Countries with uncertain COVID-19 conditions

The CDC is doing its best to keep tabs on the COVID-19 situation in all countries across the globe, so that international travellers can stay safe, according to report.

Nevertheless, report found that the agency’s list is far from complete.

There are currently 37 countries in which the CDC says the situation with COVID-19 is “unknown.”

Those countries include:

1. Algeria
2. Antarctica
3. Azores
4. Bhutan
5. Canary Islands
6. Christmas Island
7. Cocos (Keeling) Islands
8. Cook Islands
9. Eritrea
10. Kiribati
11. Macau SAR
12. Marshall Islands
13. Mayotte
14. Monaco
15. Nauru
16. Niue
17. Norfolk Island
18. North Korea
19. Pitcairn Islands (U.K.)
20. Saint Helena
21. Samoa
22. San Marino
23. Solomon Islands
24. South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
25. Sudan
26. Syria
27. Tajikistan
28. Tanzania
29. Tokelau
30. Tonga
31. Turkmenistan
32. Tuvalu
33. Uzbekistan
34. Vanuatu
35. Venezuela
36. Wake Island
37. Yemen

The CDC, therefore, advised that US citizens who plan to visit any of those countries should check the Web sites of the US State Department and the Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) for a complete list of travel advisories and alerts.

It would also be a good idea to sign up for the State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP), report stated.

Once signed up, consumers will automatically receive important information from the US Embassy about safety conditions in other countries so that they can make more informed decisions about travel plans.

In connection with the need to take precautions, it is said that the CDC has no power to prevent someone from travelling, but it’s in a good position to keep a watchful eye out for Americans.

The agency suggests that everyone should avoid travelling to locations designated with the “Level 4: COVID-19 Very High.”

If travel to one of these places is unavoidable, the agency says consumers should get fully vaccinated for COVID-19 first.

The US Embassy in Nassau, Bahamas, added another reason why Americans should curtail their Bahamian travel plans.

The embassy stated: “Moreover, even fully vaccinated travelers might be at increased risk for getting and possibly spreading some COVID-19 variants, and we recommend US citizens delay travel unless absolutely necessary.”

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