U.S. Officials Issue ‘High-Risk’ Travel Warning After Singapore Reopens To Americans

U.S. Officials Issue 'High-Risk' Travel Warning After Singapore Reopens To Americans

The United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) raised Singapore to Level 4, its highest risk category, from Level 3 previously. The notice to US residents urged to avoid travel and if you must, to be fully vaccinated, wear a mask and social distance.  

The ultramodern city-state is now on the list of “very high” risk travel destinations due to the very high levels of Covid-19 in Singapore. Countries to be moved into Level 4 have had more than 500 cases per 100,000 residents in the past 28 days, according to CDC criteria. 

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To date, Singapore has reported nearly 151,000 cases with 239 deaths but has seen a spike of new cases with 2,553 cases reported in the last 24 hours (as of this posting). The country has had a record high 70,374 COVID cases in the last 28 days according to Johns Hopkins University data.

As of October 9, 2021, a total of 9,401,855 vaccine doses have been administered to the population of nearly 6 million residents. While over 82% of Singapore is fully vaccinated – compared to only 57% of the US – the CDC along with the State Department are urging travelers to reconsider plans to Level 4 locations. 

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This is in contrast to Singapore announcing the expansion of a quarantine-free travel scheme for travelers vaccinated against Covid-19, under the expanded Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL). This program allows vaccinated travellers to quarantine-free travel between Singapore and seven European countries, Canada, United States and soon South Korea. 

Travelers must show proof of Covid-19 vaccination and take two Covid-19 Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests when flying into Singapore. Whether you are a short-term or long-term pass holder, you need to apply for a Vaccinated Travel Pass (VTP) to board the VTL flights to Singapore, which can be done online.