Quarantine period reduced to 10 days as of March 22

(CMR) With over 91 percent of persons over 60 years old now vaccinated, the quarantine period required for travelers to the Cayman Islands who have completed a valid vaccination program will be reduced from 14 to 10 days as of March 22, Premier Alden McLaughlin has announced.

McLaughlin said with the number of persons over 60 vaccinated, “this gives us confidence that the most vulnerable have been protected from the worst of the COVID-19 disease.”

Premier McLaughlin said to receive the reduced quarantine period, travelers must complete the vaccination program at least two weeks before arriving in the Cayman Islands and provide a negative PCR test taken no more than 72 hours before arrival.

Travelers will also need to receive a negative test when they arrive on the island and must have a negative COVID-19 test to be released from quarantine.

All persons in the travelers' quarantine group must have also received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to reduce the quarantine period.

People traveling with children under 16 years old who are not vaccinated will continue being subjected to the 14-day quarantine period.

McLaughlin said persons who provide a false certificate of vaccination would have committed an offense and would be liable to pay a fine of up to $10,000 or imprisonment for up to two years.

At least 31 percent of the population has received at least one dose of the vaccine, and 15 percent have received both doses.

Premier McLaughlin said the country had some way to go to reach the 70 to 80 percent vaccination target needed to reopen the country's borders but that the country was well on the way to achieving this.

Meantime, Governor Martyn Roper said with three more shipments of the Pfizer vaccine expected by April, the country will receive enough vaccines to vaccinate the entire adult population by May.

“By early May, all of those over the age of 16 who want to be vaccinated could have had a second dose of the vaccine,” Governor Roper said.

A shipment of approximately 20,000 vaccines is expected on the BA flight tomorrow, while another shipment of 20,000 doses is expected by March 25. A final delivery of 23,000 doses should arrive on the BA flight on April 7, bring the total number of COVID-19 vaccine doses received by the Cayman Islands to over 100,000.

Vaccines are expected to be available to children under 16 years old by this summer.