By MyVue News.com Staff Reporter
Basseterre, 15th April, 2021 (MyVue News.com)-St. Kitts & Nevis was one of the first countries worldwide to implement a 14-day quarantine for all visitors and nationals travelling to the territory.
This protocol has helped tremendously to protect the islands from any serious outbreak of the deadly Coronavirus.
However, now that the situation on the ground has improved and almost half of the target population has been vaccinated, (with the first dose), health officials have been examining the possibilities of reducing the quarantine period, down from two weeks, to only 7 days.
This will be conditional and those arriving would have to be fully vaccinated.
Though the Task Force is trying to find the right balance between facilitating the tourism industry and the full operations of the economy, they are also factoring in the continued need to protect the lives and well-being of citizens.
“If you come into St. Kitts and you are fully vaccinated, at present, yes, we continue our quarantine period,” said the Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Hazel Laws.
She said the rationale behind that is that there was a recent case where someone arrived fully vaccinated and after their 14 days of quarantine, they tested positive for the virus.” It is believed, said the CMO, that on his way to St. Kitts he picked up the virus.
That patient recovered quickly and remained fine and that was because the vaccine protected him from serious illness, hospitalization, and death.
Recognizing though that there may be a chance of transmitting the virus, health officials prefer to remain cautious.
However, the CMO revealed that the Ministry of Health and the Health Emergency Operating Centre, are looking at the data and the latest science, to determine if the vaccine prevents transmission.
“And once the science is there to back it, we are looking at a means by which we can probably reduce the quarantine period, “ stated Dr. Laws.
She was at the time speaking at a Tourism Stakeholders Meeting at St. Kitts Marriott, on Wednesday, 14th April, 2021, hosted by the St. Kitts Tourism Authority and Ministry of Tourism.
Featured Photo: St. Kitts & Nevis Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Hazel Laws