CDC: Fully Vaccinated Americans Can Now Travel Safely

FRIDAY, April 2, 2021 (HealthDay News) — Fully vaccinated Americans can travel domestically and internationally at “low risk to themselves,” but they must continue to follow social-distancing rules, wear a mask in public, avoid crowds, and wash their hands frequently, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday.

The new CDC guidelines also state that fully vaccinated Americans do not need to get a COVID-19 test before arriving in another country unless that country requires it, and they do not need to quarantine after returning to the United States unless their local health officials require it. However, vaccinated travelers should have a negative test result before boarding a return flight to the United States and should get tested again three to five days after they return home, the CDC said.

People are considered fully vaccinated two weeks after receiving the second dose of the two-dose Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or two weeks after receiving the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

The CDC continues to discourage nonessential travel within the United States by people who are not fully vaccinated and says that if they must travel, they should be tested one to three days before their trip and again three to five days after they return home. If they do not get tested after a trip, they should self-quarantine for seven to 10 days.

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