CDC Updates Travel Recommendations for 110 Countries, Moving Dozens to ‘Recommended’ for Vaccinated Individuals

Budapest’s Parliament building across the Danube River

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced significant changes to travel recommendations for over 110 countries.

The action moves Japan and 60 other countries from the CDC’s most severe level, “Level 4,” which discouraged all travel, to a level where travel is recommended for fully vaccinated individuals.

“Avoid travel to these destinations,” the CDC guidance for Level 4 reads.

The list of countries in this tier includes Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Egypt, India, the Netherlands, North Korea, Sweden, and Yemen.

“Make sure you are fully vaccinated before traveling to these destinations,” the guidance for Level 3 reads.  “Unvaccinated travelers should avoid nonessential travel to these destinations.”

Among the countries moved to “Level 3” are Canada, Ecuador, France, Honduras, Hungary, Italy, Mexico, Russia, Spain, Switzerland, and Turkey.

The action comes one month before the start of the 2021 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo.

The CDC also moved 50 countries and territories to the “Level 2” and “Level 1” rungs.  Countries now on “Level 1,” which represents the lowest risk for contracting the coronavirus, include Albania, Belize, Iceland, Israel, and South Korea.

In a statement, the CDC said that the changes came about after it revised criteria for travel health notices, changing the Level 4 “avoid all travel” tier to 500 cases per 100,000 inhabitants from 100 cases per 100,000.

(Photo: Accura Media Group)