“WE’RE not trying to keep you longer on the fifth day — unfortunately, we need to confirm a negative result before we [release],” Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation Chief Executive Officer Esther L. Muna said on Monday regarding CNMI Covid-19 protocols.
She said specimen from travelers is collected upon arrival and on the fifth day after arrival.
The day after a traveler’s date of arrival is counted as the first day of quarantine, she added.
Results of the test on the fifth day after arrival are usually received in the afternoon or later in the evening on the same day, Muna said.
Based on the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, travelers may be able to shorten their quarantine.
“Your local public health authorities make the final decision about how long quarantine should last based on local conditions and needs. Follow the recommendations of your local public health department if you need to quarantine,” the guidelines state.
They added that the options include stopping quarantine after day 10 without testing, or after day 7 upon receiving a negative test result as early as day 5.
These guidelines can be found at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/your-health/quarantine-isolation.html
On Sept. 24, 2021, the CNMI revised its entry requirements for unvaccinated travelers with guidance from the CDC.
All inbound travelers originating from a Level 3 or higher jurisdiction on the CDC travel recommendations list who are not fully vaccinated against Covid-19 are required to quarantine for seven days in a designated government facility if they submit a negative polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, test dated no earlier than 48 hours prior to arrival.
Fully vaccinated travelers, regardless of travel origin, are still required to quarantine for five days in a designated government facility.
Any stopover of 24 hours in a Level 3 or higher jurisdiction will count as a traveler’s origin.
All travelers will still be tested for Covid-19 on arrival and on their fifth day in quarantine.
Fully vaccinated travelers will be released after they test negative for Covid-19 on the fifth day.
Unvaccinated travelers will be tested on their fifth day in quarantine, but will be released on their seventh day if they test negative and have submitted a negative PCR test dated no earlier than 48 hours prior to arrival.
Unvaccinated travelers who have not submitted a negative PCR test will be released on their 10th day if they test negative on their fifth day.
CHCC may conduct additional PCR tests on the seventh or 10th day when deemed clinically necessary.
All travelers who test positive for Covid-19 will be isolated in the designated facility for 10 days.
Fully vaccinated travelers must include their vaccination documentation in their mandatory health declaration form prior to their arrival.
CDC vaccination record cards are not acceptable vaccination records for the purpose of quarantining for five days only.
For individuals who were vaccinated in the CNMI, the CHCC Communicable Disease Investigation/Inspection team will look up CHCC vaccination records to verify that the individual is fully vaccinated.
For individuals who were vaccinated outside the CNMI, they will have to provide an official immunization record from their vaccine provider that must include the name of the immunization record provider, traveler’s name, traveler’s date of birth, type of vaccine administered, vaccine name, vaccine lot number, and vaccine administration date.
Essential workers requesting entry into the CNMI must complete the essential worker request section within the online CNMI Mandatory Declaration Form at least three days prior to arrival.
The request will be reviewed by the CNMI Territorial Health Office for a decision.
Not all requests are automatically approved.
Travelers who are requesting Critical or Essential Work approval will be evaluated based on the strength of work justification, point of origin, negative PCR test results dated no more than 72 hours prior to arrival, Covid-19 vaccinations, and transit/flight plans.
Grantees are required to practice Covid-19 precautions at all times and abide by other establishments’ social distancing expectations.
Essential workers may report to work after receiving their test results from specimen collected on the day of arrival and approval of job-site assessment.
Travelers in this category are urged to communicate with the CNMI Territorial Health Official via [email protected] in advance of planning their trip to CNMI.
An “essential worker” is one listed in the Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers Advisory List accessible from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Cybersecurity, and Infrastructure Security Agency, or CISA, at http://www.cisa.gov/critical-infrastrucutre-sectors
The CNMI, while recognizing CISA categories, has established a local process to consider modified quarantine for certain essential work needs critical for CNMI.
Simply being in a CISA category should not be perceived as a reason to be exempted from local procedures nor does it confer “approved essential worker” for the CNMI.
All travelers are encouraged to fill out their health declaration form prior to arrival at https://governor.gov.mp/covid-19/travel
For comments, concerns, and inquiries regarding entry or quarantine protocols, call 488-0211 or email [email protected]
The hotline is available from 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. Monday to Sunday.
If you are experiencing Covid-19 symptoms, contact the CHCC Tele-Triage Hotline at 233-2067, which operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
