Mexico Ends Warning System For Covid And Will Treat Virus As Endemic

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Last Updated 2 years ago

Once again leading the way among countries, Mexico has made the remarkable decision to officially treat Covid as endemic and end its famous color-coded warning system for Covid. Throughout the pandemic, the system had been used to categorize different Mexican states as either green, yellow or red based on pandemic trends.

The darker the color attributed to a certain destination, the more social restrictions were expected. Now, this system has been fully abolished.

Covid Will Officially Become Endemic In Mexico On May 1

As of April 25, Mexico has ceased classifying the states in the Federation according to pandemic markers, signaling an end to all surviving pandemic mandates just over two years after the virus first emerged. Since that date, the country has stopped issuing new Covid advisories and ceased recommending health measures.

As announced by The Ministry of Health, reports on the epidemiological situation in individual states and their subsequent categorization will also be discontinued. Hugo Lopez-Gatell, the Undersecretary of Health, and one of the leading authorities in Covid management in Mexico, said himself ‘the current warning ends on May 1‘.

After that date, new reports will not follow, making issue number 13 (which accounts for the April 18-May 1 period) the final one. Additionally, once the advisories are removed in May, all 32 Mexican states will be given a ‘green' status, in accordance with the country's new approach to Covid management.

In other words, within Mexico, Covid is now a virus like all widely-disseminated others, including in popular tourist hotspots like the American-favorite Cancun and the wider Quintana Roo. Commenting on the decision, Lopez-Gatell was quoted saying Covid ‘is not going to go away' and that it is time to ‘move on from the pandemic state'.

In general, Mexico was never one to target travelers or impose draconian measures to tackle the virus, unlike many in Europe or Asia that only recently have started reopening for tourism. It maintained an open border, even during the darker months of Omicron, and has welcomed visitors irrespective of vaccination status from the beginning.

Country Claims Title Of Freest In The World Right Now

Although Mexico's more relaxed rules generally meant tourists were able to fly to Mexico without all the usual Covid bureaucracy, they were still expected to observe guidelines in place at their destination. Those normally included mask wearing indoors and social distancing in ‘red' states, while those in ‘green' enjoyed greater social freedoms.

However, from May 1 onwards, strict Covid tracking and mandates will become a thing of the past. The Undersecretary also pinpointed that, while the now-defunct traffic light system served as guidance for Mexican states to establish their own health measures, those were never binding, including mask wearing.

He reasserted Mexico's unique position as a more liberal state in times of Covid by reminding the public that, even though masks have always been optional in a majority of destinations in Mexico, ‘at this time the use of face masks is no longer essential'. In summary, not only tourists are free to enjoy their time in sun mask-free, Covid levels are so low they are not even advised to wear them anymore.

Tourists are still reminded Mexican states have full autonomy regarding Covid measures, and others like Jalisco, where the summer hotspot of Puerto Vallarta is located, still impose a mandatory mask requirement. When traveling to Mexico, foreigners must continue checking up-to-date guidelines for their destination.

Mexico Is Open And The Safest It's Ever Been Since Covid

On its last report, the lucky 13th, Mexico sees Covid out with a promising 15 per cent reduction in cases compared to the 12th issue. Within the 14-day period, 4.387 individuals reported Covid symptoms or only 0.08 percent of the total since the pandemic was declared. Just a month ago, Mexico also reached its safest health levels yet in over two years.

As defined by the World Health Organization, an endemic state can only be announced when a country has managed to suppress a virus and keep it at the lowest possible levels. High vaccination coverage in the adult population, and very few deaths and transmission are all equally relevant markers, and criteria Mexico seems to meet.

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