“Bermuda currently meets the standard for an upgrade to Level 2 by the primary criteria” from the U.S Centres for Disease Control, Premier David Burt said, adding that the Ministry of Health has been in contact with the CDC, and he “raised this issue with the new acting US Consul General when we met last week.”
CDC Classification System
According to the CDC website, “destinations with populations of 200,000 or less” with a case count of more than 100 over the past 28 days are determined to be ‘Level 4′. At the time the CDC moved Bermuda to Level 4 in December 2020, we had well over 100 new cases in the previous 28 days.
As of February 2021, the island’s rate of new cases has significantly declined — at the very end of 2020 we had 604 total confirmed cases to date and we currently have 694 — and we have not recorded more than 100 cases in the past 30 days.
To be more specific, the CDC website states that the “CDC does not count identified imported cases [i.e., cases in travelers who were exposed in another country] against a destination’s total,” meaning that when you discount the island’s imported cases from total new cases, we currently fall well under the ‘100 case in 30 days’ threshold.
Premier’s Comments:
Speaking at yesterday evening’s [Feb 9] press briefing, Premier David Burt said, “During the last outbreak, we all remember that the United States Centres for Disease Control downgraded Bermuda to a level 4 travel warning. Bermuda currently meets the standard for an upgrade to Level 2 by the primary criteria.
“If we continue our stellar record for the next week, we should meet the criteria for Level 1. The Ministry of Health has been in contact with the CDC, and I also raised this issue with the new acting US Consul General when we met last week.
“Sticking with matters related to travel, last week, I held a meeting with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Transport, the Chief Medical Officer, and the Bermuda Tourism Authority to discuss a long-term strategy for Bermuda’s tourism industry.
“The purpose of the meeting was to consider how we can safely begin to expand our Island’s tourism product in light of the ever-changing global situation with the coronavirus.
“The Government will not rush into these decisions and will act under the guidance and recommendation of the Ministry of Health and Chief Medical Officer.
“However, it is important for the public to know, especially those who work in our tourism and hospitality industries, that we are examining the options learning from our experiences last year to ensure that we can provide economic activity while we remain safe,” the Premier added.
During the press conference the Premier also noted that at next week’s press conference, the Government will “provide an update to the rule changes for vaccinated persons travelling to Bermuda.”
As of of this time, the CDC still has Bermuda listed as “Level 4: Covid-19 Very High” and states that “travelers should avoid all travel to Bermuda.”
