US eases travel ratings as COVID cases in India dip

As COVID-19 cases fall in India, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and State Department have eased COVID-19 travel ratings for the country.

The CDC said it had changed its recommendation for India to ‘Level 1: Low’ from ‘Level 3: High’, which urges unvaccinated Americans to avoid travel to those locations.

“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a Level 1 Travel Health Notice due to COVID-19, indicating a low level of COVID-19 in the country. Your risk of contracting COVID-19 and developing severe symptoms may be lower if you are fully vaccinated with an FDA authorissed vaccine,” State Department said. “Before planning any international travel, please review the CDC’s specific recommendations for vaccinated and unvaccinated travellers,” the statement added.

The CDC also lowered Chad, Guinea and Namibia to Level 1. The State Department on Monday lowered its travel advisory for India to ‘Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution’, reflecting the lower Covid-19 risk, but also cited the risk of “crime and terrorism”.

Travellers from India to the US are required to submit a negative report for COVID -19 test taken within 24 hours of the flight. “Children under 2 years of age do not need to test. There is also an option for people who have documented recovery from Covid-19 in the past 90 days,” the CDC site read.

With 1,270 new Covid-19 infections, the active caseload in India dipped to 15,859 on Monday, the health ministry said.