The government of Nicaragua reported that as of this Friday it will no longer ask national and foreign travelers vaccinated against COVID-19 for a negative PCR test carried out in the last 72 hours to enter the country, international media report.
“Per the guidelines of the President of the Republic of Nicaragua, Daniel Ortega Saavedra, a negative RT-PCR result for COVID-19 will not be requested as a requirement for entry into the country, only the complete vaccination schedule against this disease will be required for entry” , according to a resolution of the Ministry of Health, cited by the agency EFE.
The only travelers who will be required to present the negative RT-PCR test are those who do not demonstrate having a complete vaccination schedule, and it must not exceed 72 hours from the time the sample was taken, according to the new provision.
Nicaragua, as of today, stops requesting a negative PCR test to enter the country, this is replaced by the complete vaccination scheme against covid-19. #NicaraguaUniqueOriginal pic.twitter.com/eb2L2U3VrL
– Nicaraguan Institute of Tourism (@InturNicaragua) June 17, 2022
On July 22, 2020, the Government of Nicaragua established the negative test for COVID-19 as a requirement to enter Nicaraguan territory, making it one of the last countries in the region to adopt that measure, and now in one of the last to eliminate it, reports the news release.
Until last Tuesday, Nicaragua officially accumulated 241 deaths and 18,997 confirmed cases of the infectious disease, since March 2020, when the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus was first reported in the Central American country, according to the Ministry of Health.
Nevertheless, EFE points out that the official figures contrast with the activists and independent organizations that set nearly 6,000 deaths from pneumonia and other symptoms related to the disease, as well as more than 32,000 suspected cases, data that the Government does not recognize.
Since the pandemic began, Nicaragua has not applied restrictive measures as part of the fight against the coronavirus, which has earned it criticism from the World Health Organization (WHO), adds the Spanish agency.
The Central American country is currently the favorite way for many Cubans to emigrate irregularly to the United States, since it does not require an entry visa for travelers from the island.
Now, the suspension of the compulsory nature of the PCR eliminates another procedure for Cubans, who, moreover, have a high percentage of the complete anticovid vaccination scheme, with nationally produced drugs that have also been used in the Nicaraguan immunization campaign. .
EFE / OnCuba
