THE WATCH STAFF
A “cautiously optimistic” government of the Bahamas recently eased COVID-19 restrictions in the Caribbean island nation.
In making the March 12, 2022, announcement, the Ministry of Health and Wellness relaxed several pandemic rules, including those for cruise ships, social gatherings and masks, the Nassau Guardian newspaper reported.
Minister of Health Dr. Michael Darville told the Guardian that in addition to the recent changes, he is closely watching the new omicron subvariant that is causing a surge in COVID-19 cases in Asia and Europe.
“Our job is to monitor. As we monitor, we will take into consideration what’s happening, particularly the possibility of it now spreading to the United States,” Darville told the Guardian on March 22.
The March 12 move came as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reassigned the travel health advisory for the Bahamas from Level 4 — “very high” level of COVID-19 — to Level 3, which is “high.” The CDC also downgraded several other Caribbean countries and territories to Level 3. Level 1 is “low,” and Level 2 is “moderate.”
(Pictured: Cruise ships anchored in Nassau in 2019. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has lowered its risk level for cruise travel.)
Darville called the CDC change encouraging.
“As these trends are sustained over the next month, we believe we will qualify for a further decrease in our risk rating down to a Level 2,” Darville told Bahamian newspaper The Tribune on March 18. “As we have seen from past experience, these reductions in our rating have a positive impact on our tourism sector and by extension the wider economy.”
As of March 12, 2022, there were 101 confirmed active COVID-19 cases in the Bahamas and hospitalizations had decreased, according to the Guardian.
Although new COVID-19 cases have steadily declined to single-digit cases daily, Darville said health officials are concerned about spring break — the traditional school holiday in March and April when thousands of American college students travel to the Bahamas.
“For individuals who come into the country, we have a very stringent vaccination and testing policy. We removed the five-day essential testing upon arrival, and we have the healthcare protocols that must be adhered to throughout the country.”
The United States has delivered almost 300,000 doses of the 379,000 that it pledged to the Bahamas in 2021.
“It’s so important that Bahamians and residents fully appreciate that the country’s return to normality is closely tied to all of us continuing to be compliant with COVID safety recommendations,” Darville told the Guardian.
IMAGE CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES