Fully Vaccinated Americans Get Green Light to Travel Within U.S.: Health Officials

U.S. public health officials have updated their guidelines for domestic travel, stopping short of endorsing discretionary leisure and business trips. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Friday issued guidance for a phased expansion of domestic travel as the coronavirus pandemic continues to take an unpredictable course.

The CDC’s advice to U.S. citizens (posted, here) is that it’s low risk to travel if you’re vaccinated and wear a mask and that there is no need to quarantine after international travel if you’re vaccinated. Approximately 100 million Americans have had at least one dose of coronavirus vaccine, the Washington Post reported.

Officials said that if you’re an American who was fully vaccinated against Covid-19, meaning it has been at least two weeks since the person’s last shot in the series, and you were exposed to someone with Covid-19, you are not required to quarantine as long as you haven’t had any symptoms.

The U.S. public health watchdog updated its guidance for travel on Friday because of freshly released scientific studies showing the real-world reliability of the vaccines.

“Expect record crowds this summer to be traveling around the country,” said Scott Mayerowitz, executive editor at The Points Guy (TPG).

Of the Americans who are interested in traveling in 2021, the majority (76 percent) are as likely, if not more, to travel to a destination or with a travel provider that requires proof of COVID-19 vaccination, according to a new study by TPG.

Early in the pandemic, officials recommended that Americans should avoid travel, and earlier in March the CDC maintained its advice that Americans — vaccinated or not — should avoid traveling.

MORE TO COME: Story to be updated.