More Locations Find There Way Onto CDC's 'High' Risk Travel List Amid COVID Case Spikes

With about half of the 235 locations that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is currently monitoring listed in the highest COVID warning category for travel for Americans, two more destinations were added on Monday.

The CDC upgraded both the Middle Eastern country of Jordan and the Caribbean Island of Sint Eustatius to its Level 3 "high" risk category.

Level 3 is the highest risk category reported by the agency after making over its rating system in April. The Level 4 "very high" risk category is now reserved for extreme COVID cases, the emergence of a new variant, or the complete collapse of a nation's healthcare system. There are no locations currently listed in the Level 4 category.

A Level 3 destination has more than 100 COVID cases per 100,000 residents reported in the past 28 days. The CDC warns that travelers to these places should be up to date with their COVID-19 vaccines. However, the agency does say that "Even if you are up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines, you may still be at risk for getting and spreading COVID-19."

Jordan and Sint Eustatius join several other high-profile nations that have been listed in the Level 3 category as their COVID situation worsened, including many European countries such as France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Norway, Portugal, Greece, and the U.K.

Much of the Caribbean is also listed in the Level 3 "high" risk category as well as Canada, Mexico, Brazil, South Korea, and Thailand.

Also seeing changes on Monday was the CDC's Level 2 "moderate" risk category as Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, and Senegal were moved onto the warning list.

A Level 2 nation has between 50 and 100 COVID cases per 100,000 residents reported in the past 28 days.

All three places were upgraded to Level 2 as their COVID cases increased since the previous week when they were listed in the Level 1 "low" risk category by the CDC.

Currently, there are about 20 places in the Level 2 category, including India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, and South Africa.

New movers to the Level 1 "low" risk category included Suriname and Zimbabwe, which was good news for both nations as their COVID situations improved.

Suriname was previously listed in the Level 3 "high" risk category, while Zimbabwe was in the Level 2 "moderate" risk category last week.

A Level 1 destination has 49 or fewer COVID cases per 100,000 residents over the past 28 days.

Currently, there are about 25 locations listed in the Level 1 category, including Egypt, Tanzania, Cameroon, Nigeria, and Pakistan.

Lastly, only one nation was added to the CDC's "unknown" risk category – Malawi.

The "unknown" category, which currently has about 65 locations listed, is saved for locations that have unreliable COVID information. The CDC does advise against traveling to places that are listed in the "unknown" risk category because the risks of contracting COVID-19 there are simply unknown.