Safe Travels
Can I Travel Once I’m Vaccinated? By Michelle Baran
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t’s been just over two months since the U.S. began distributing the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines for COVID-19, and since that time more than 64 million doses have been administered, according to the CDC’s vaccination tracker. At the current rate of about 840,00 doses being administered each day on average, 75% of the U.S. population should receive their first vaccine dose by October 2021, according to an interactive Reuters COVID-19 vaccine tracking tool. Right now, more than 13% of the U.S. population has received at least one dose. Estimates on when we might reach herd immunity, when enough people are immune to the virus so that it can’t spread, vary between as early as this spring and as late as this fall. In the meantime, many healthcare and frontline workers, as well as citizens age 65 and older have begun receiving their first and second doses. And they, like many of the rest of us eagerly awaiting our turn in line, are likely asking themselves: Now what? What can I do? Can I travel? What safety precautions will I still need to take? Where can I go? Who can I see? Earlier this month, we asked our readers for the questions they have about the future of travel at this critical juncture in the pandemic—where we’re still very much in the thick of the health crisis but have begun to get a glimpse of what a way out may look and feel like, thanks to the development and deployment of COVID-19 vaccines. We reached out to infectious disease experts to help us answer them. They report that the vaccines are indeed a cause for optimism, including for travel and travelers. “I’m so hopeful about this year in terms of travel and being able to get back to doing, [perhaps] slightly differently, a lot of the things we’re used to doing. And that’s of course due to the vaccines,” says Kristin Bratton Nelson, assistant professor of epidemiology at Emory University in Atlanta.
Dr. Manisha Juthani, an associate professor of medicine and epidemiology at the Yale School of Medicine, and an infectious diseases specialist at Yale Medicine, is also encouraged about how this year will unfold. When asked what advice she would offer travelers regarding how they should view the coming weeks and months to avoid having too many hopes dashed (we already went down that road in 2020, remember?), she says, “Once vaccinated and if the rates of infection are low around you and in the place that you are going to, I would definitely plan to travel. “I miss traveling myself and hope to take a trip on a plane in 2021. It will require continued vigilance, public/private partnerships, and a commitment from everyone in the world to get this virus to recede, but I remain hopeful that we can do this in 2021.” The bottom line, says Dr. Juthani, “Sign up for a vaccine as soon as your chance comes to get it.”
Is it safe to travel once you’ve been vaccinated for COVID-19? Infectious disease experts agree that being vaccinated gives travelers a very important and effective added layer of protection. But that even with that added layer of protection, travelers should take precautions—and baby steps. For starters, you shouldn’t head out the door immediately after your second dose. “Remember that vaccines don’t work immediately. You need to give your body about two weeks after each dose for a strong enough immune response to occur. . . . We expect that about two weeks after your second dose you may have very high protection.” Roess notes that because we are still seeing a lot of community transmission of COVID-19, and because there are new variants circulating that we are still learning more about, those who are vaccinated should remain vigilant by continuing to wear masks and practicing social distancing.
46 | ABA Publications | Africa TRAVEL | May 2021
