CDC Now Says that Quarantine After Travel is Not Necessary
Quarantine is now a word of our daily vocabulary. When looking to travel, mandatory quarantine requirements is the first thing you should check. It applies to travel within the country and it is also required in by many countries for international visitors.
If you travel from certain states to New York, New Jersey and Connecticut for example, you are required to quarantine for 14 days. Everyone visiting Hawaii will need to quarantine for as well. As for international travel, very few countries will let you in without a quarantine requirement, if they let you in at all.
But for those who are still traveling right now, the CDC has updated its travel quarantine guidelines for what to do following a trip of any kind. The agency no longer suggests to go through a 14 self quarantine. Instead, under the new guidelines, you should just follow many of the same precautions that apply during day-to-day activities to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
CDC Guidelines
The CDC says that after you travel, you may feel well and not have any symptoms, but you can be contagious without symptoms and spread the virus to others. You and your travel companions pose a risk to your family, friends, and community for 14 days after you were exposed to the virus. Regardless of where you traveled or what you did during your trip, take these actions to protect others from getting sick after you return:
- When around others, stay at least 6 feet (about 2 arms’ length) from other people who are not from your household. It is important to do this everywhere, both indoors and outdoors.
- Wear a mask to keep your nose and mouth covered when you are outside of your home.
- Wash your hands often or use hand sanitizer (with at least 60% alcohol).
- Watch your health and look for symptoms of COVID-19. Take your temperature if you feel sick.
That’s in line with recommendations for everyone during the pandemic. However, the CDC does suggest to stay home as much as possible, avoid people at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19, and consider getting tested for COVID-19 if you participate in high-risk activities. Those activities would be visiting areas experiencing high levels of COVID-19 spread, attending large social gatherings or events, or traveling on a cruise ship or river boat.
It also suggests those added precautions for all countries labeled as “Level 3: COVID-19 Risk is High.” As of August 20, that includes most countries around the world. You can find the full list here.
Conclusion
Everyone’s risk tolerance is different. But doing your best to help prevent the spread of the virus to those around you should be a main priority, especially if you come into contact with people that are more vulnerable, such as the elderly or those with preexisting conditions. If you are planning to travel, you should also do your own research. Every country is different, and even cities, resorts or certain areas within a country could vary widely when it comes to the risk of COVID-19.
Let us know if you are still traveling these days and how does the pandemic affect your travel decisions.
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Nice that they updated this. What I always find interesting is how folks hear travel quarantine and think plane, not car, or any other method.
If one is to quarantine after being on a plane I think it’s no different than taking a subway, driving a rental car, touching gas pump handles, etc.
There are countless people who don’t bother to cover their mouth when outdoors and they sneeze. I’m guessing the assumption is they’re not within 6ft if people…but they are within 6 feet of car door handles.
Ugh. Kinda over it all. Good that they updated it though.