CDC Ups Dominican Republic COVID-19 Advisory to ‘High’

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) this week added the Dominican Republic to its Level 3: High-Risk category for COVID-19.

The Dominican Republic was one of two countries, along with Kuwait, that moved up into the highest level outside “special circumstances” because of a rise in cases in the destination (all Level 3 destinations have had more than 100 cases per 100,000 residents over the past 28 days).

“Make sure you are up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines before traveling to these destinations. If you are not up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines, avoid travel to these destinations,” the CDC’s level 3 warning reads.

The CDC recommends that travelers heading to any of the Level 3 destinations get tested with a viral test as close to departure time as possible and be fully aware of any requirements at the destination.

Both the Dominican Republic and Kuwait join the majority of destinations currently monitored by the CDC including The Bahamas, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, The Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the U.K., all of which are in that same Level 3. The majority of those countries have all been on the Level 3 list since the CDC moved to its new monitoring system earlier this year.

The remaining Level 2 countries now include Colombia, Honduras, Morocco, Sweden, and more.

According to Worldometers, the Dominican Republic recorded 1,944 COVID-19 cases on June 25, its highest daily new case count since January.