(CHCC) — The safety of the residents of the CNMI remains the top priority of the Governor’s Covid-19 Task Force and the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. Effective Aug. 20, 2021, all inbound travelers are required to quarantine in a designated government facility for five days.
All travelers will be tested for Covid-19 on arrival and on their fifth day in quarantine. Travelers will be released after they test negative for Covid-19 on the fifth day. All travelers who test positive for Covid-19 will be isolated in the designated government facility for 10 days.
All pending home quarantine applications will be denied. Travelers currently in home quarantine are expected to complete their quarantine at home and are required to report to their fifth-day test.
With an increase in cases being identified on arrival and fifth-day testing of persons who have completed a Covid-19 vaccination series (breakthrough cases), it is crucial for the well-being of the residents of the CNMI to contain the spread of Covid-19 at the border. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a vaccine breakthrough infection is defined as the detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA or antigen in a respiratory specimen collected from a person ≥14 days after they have completed all recommended doses of a U.S. Food and Drug Administration-authorized Covid-19 vaccine.
Essential workers requesting entry into 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 Official 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 with 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 travelers.health@chcc.health in advance of plannning 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-infrastructure-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 our local procedures, nor does it confer “approved essential worker” for the CNMI.
All travelers are encouraged to fill out their health declaration form at least 72 hours prior to arrival at https://governor.gov.mp/covid-19/travel
The CNMI is reminded to watch out for misinformation and to follow updates directly from the Governor’s Covid-19 Task Force and CHCC. The spread of misinformation is just as dangerous as the virus itself.
If you are experiencing Covid-19 symptoms, please contact the CHCC Tele-Triage hotline at 233-2067. The hotline runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
For comments, concerns, and inquiries, call the Governor’s Covid-19 Task Force hotline at 287-0046/0489/1089, or email travel@vaccinatecnmi.com
The hotline runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
