Netherlands forces unvaxxed & vaxxed Americans to quarantine

Fully vaccinated travellers from the United States will now have to undergo 10 days of quarantine in the Netherlands after Amsterdam designated the country a “very high risk” area over a surge in Omicron cases.

The US was added to the Netherlands’ list of “very high risk countries” on Thursday, where it now sits together with Somalia, Afghanistan, Ukraine, Jordan, Venezuela, Haiti and the United Kingdom among others. Mandatory quarantine for American travellers was introduced on the same day.

According to restrictions implemented last week, travellers from very high-risk countries “must self-quarantine for 10 days, even if they have proof of vaccination or proof of recovery.” The self-isolation period can be cut back if a traveler tests negative for coronavirus halfway the quarantine.

Travellers aged 12 and above will also have to provide a negative Covid-19 test upon entry to the Netherlands.

The new restrictions are significant due to the fact that they apply to vaccinated and unvaccinated travellers alike as some studies suggest that certain Covid-19 vaccines fare worse against Omicron than against previous strains.

The US has recorded the most Covid-19 cases and deaths on the planet since the beginning of the pandemic, reporting over 52 million cases and 800,000 deaths, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The US has also recorded the most cases and deaths in the world over the past 7 days – its 1,600,000 cases nearly three times as much as the runner up, the UK, which recorded over 600,000 cases.

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