The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has lowered the travel alert for the CNMI from level 2 to 1, indicating low risk for Covid-19.
The CNMI, whose total Covid-19 count was 168 as of this week, had not reported any recent cases.
CNMI Gov. Ralph Torres said he wanted to make sure the local population has reached herd immunity before reopening the island to tourists.
“We are safe as a community, but in order for us to open up to tourism, we need to hit a certain threshold,” Marianas Variety quoted the governor as saying. “If we are not safe, then we have [no] business talking about tourism.”
For starters, the governor said, there is a need to consider the quarantine protocols for visitors upon their return to their home countries.