Tourism Ministry Open to Reviewing Restrictions as COVID Cases Fall

According to the CDC, there were 542 new COVID-19 infections reported on 13 July. The rolling daily average decreased to 70 for the first time in a week on Thursday. There are an estimated 1,423 active cases at present, which is lower than when over 1,800 people were trapped on 24 May. The restriction on wearing masks and the need for unvaccinated travellers from Cayman Islands to quarantine have been lifted, according to Minister of Tourism Kenneth Bryan. The virus-related restrictions, such as mask requirements and the requirement for unvaccinated travellers from Cayman Islands to quarantine, are expected to end in June.

On Wednesday, Bryan remarked that some of the limits were still holding back the recovery of the tourism sector, and he was hoping that once Cabinet examines them later this month, based on public health recommendations things would alter, especially now that the numbers are declining.

As of Thursday, only five people were in hospital as a result of COVID-19 symptoms, three of whom had been vaccinated.

The rate of new COVID-19 infections in the first weekly Public Health Spotlight on communicable and non-communicable diseases, which ran between May 22 and May 28, decreased by 32% from the previous week, with test positivity under 25 percent.

While the COVID-19 epidemic may not be over, all signs point to decreases and a downward trend in the Cayman Islands. “There have been some encouraging indications of infection reduction in the current wave of illness. The coming weeks will be critical in determining whether there is a decline in incidence,” they added.

Meanwhile, more than 94 percent of the population aged five and older has received at least one vaccine. Everyone is being urged to get a vaccination or a booster depending on their circumstances, as it is evident that while vaccines may not prevent infection, they have been important in preventing individuals from becoming really sick.

According to the CDC, there have been over 26,000 cases of chikungunya in Cayman since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, with almost 25,000 infections recorded since September. COVID has been connected to the deaths of 28 people thus far, two of whom died prior to vaccines becoming available. The majority of the remaining sufferers in Cayman possessed severe comorbidities or were unvaccinated, according to government statistics.