The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has moved 22 countries to its “Level Four” highest-risk list, which it advises Americans to avoid all but essential travel to.
The list now includes Australia, Israel, Argentina, Egypt and several Caribbean islands, such as Saint Lucia and the Bahamas.
Places are usually added to the high-risk list because they have reported more than 500 new cases of Covid-19 per 100,000 residents in the previous 28 days.
The CDC’s travel advisory lists are not enforced - they are merely meant as guidance for travellers to stay fully informed about a country’s Covid case rates.
However, the advice for all countries in the highest-risk category is: “Avoid travel to [this country]... If you must travel [there], make sure you are fully vaccinated before travel.”
The countries newly added to the Level Four list are: Albania, Argentina, Australia, the Bahamas, Bahrain, Bermuda, Bolivia, the British Virgin Islands, Cape Verde, Egypt, Grenada, Guyana, Israel, Panama, Qatar, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, São Tomé and Príncipe, Sint Maarten, Suriname, Turks and Caicos, and Uruguay.
The UK was already on the Level Four list, along with Canada, Spain and the Netherlands.
Meanwhile, 20 countries including Uganda, Kuwait, Jamaica, Costa Rica and Cuba were upgraded to the CDC’s Level Three (high-risk) list.
“Do not travel internationally until you are fully vaccinated,” reads the CDC’s general advice to US travellers.
“Getting vaccinated is still the best way to protect yourself from severe disease, slow the spread of Covid-19, and reduce the number of new variants. The CDC encourages you get a Covid-19 vaccine booster dose if you are eligible.”
Countries on the CDC ‘low risk’ (Level Two) list include Japan and Hong Kong - where US travellers are currently not admitted - Equatorial Guinea and Kyrgyzstan.
