RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The CDC (U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) has included Brazil in the list of countries with “very high” risk for covid-19. In a statement issued on Monday (Jan.31, 2021), the health agency contraindicated travel to the country by U.S. citizens.
In addition to Brazil, 11 other locations were included on the risk list. Anguilla, Chile, Ecuador, French Guiana, Kosovo, Mexico, Moldova, Paraguay, St. Vincent, the Grenadines, Singapore, and the Philippines.
The U.S. advises against travel to 128 countries and territories considered to be at high risk for covid-19 contagion.
CLASSIFICATION
U.S. health officials use a 4-tiered system to rank international destinations for risk of exposure to the coronavirus:
level 1 – low risk: the recommendation is to be fully vaccinated before traveling;
level 2 – moderate risk: anyone who is not vaccinated and is a risk patient for covid should avoid nonessential travel;
level 3 – high risk: all U.S. citizens should avoid unnecessary travel to these countries;
Level 4 – very high risk: people are advised not to travel.
The CDC uses data from the WHO (World Health Organization) and other official sources to make the recommendations. Locations that do not release data are classified as Level 4.
The Ministry of Health confirmed 284 new deaths from covid-19 in Brazil on Monday (Jan. 31). There have been 77,947 new cases of covid in the last 24h in the country.
The moving average of deaths was above 200 this week after more than 40 days below the average. The curve shows an upward trend with a variation of 253% from two weeks ago.