Covid surging in Bonaire

[uncfnp]

Wouldn't you have to re-test and be able to show a negative result in order to board a flight for the US?

I don’t know what the airlines are doing but per the CDC you can return to the US without a negative test if you have “documentation of recovery” which is a positive test result no older than 90 days and a letter stating cleared to travel. How one gets this in another country is part of my question.

The problem with repeat testing is you can remain positive days to weeks after you are no longer considered contagious per US standards.

 

[uncfnp]

You know, I read a gazillion threads about testing, and have yet to read a report of a false positive. They must be quite rare.

I don’t know how one decides if a particular test is a false positive but I do know there was a recall in the US last year.

Potential False Positive Results: Certain Ellume COVID-19 Home Tests

Find out if your Ellume COVID-19 Home Test is affected

www.fda.gov

I think part of the concern with lateral flow tests that are read visually is operator error. Is that a faint line? I think sometimes, especially at the beginning, some testers may have been a bit over zealous with their interpretation of the results.

 

[homerdoc]

Great. So I should have bought two of them. I guess I'll make a back-up plan. Leaving tomorrow--not Bonaire.

I actually booked an appointment for bon bida (sp?) - for later in the day if that that happened. (Self administered tests came back positive on one of us) - they didnt, so I was out 60 bucks per person....but was okay it was a back up.

My bac - missed the not bonaire comment

 

[Dan]

Thanks for the info. I had wondered if other countries followed their own protocols or the CDC guidelines for Americans testing positive abroad.

Per the CDC guidelines retesting if positive is not recommended. As of this week isolation is 5 days with no fever for 24 hours (without fever reducers) and symptoms better but should continue to mask an additional 5 days.

Time for quarantine for exposure is none if fully vaccinated (now defined as vaccinated within 6 months/2 for J&J or 2 doses plus booster if more than 6 months) but mask for 10 days. If unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated the quarantine is 5 days plus 5 days masked. If not possible to quarantine then mask for 10 days.

Retesting for exposure is day 5.

Palau seems to follow CDC guidelines. I just came back this Monday from Palau for a week on Palau Aggressor 2 and a week on Rock Islands Aggressor. One of the CDs mentioned that back in September, one of the guests tested positive after Day 5 on the boat (Palau Covid protocol is to test every visitor on arrival to Palau, if the result were negative, then they put a wristband on the visitor for the next 4 days & on Day 5 the visitor would be tested again. If the result were negative, then they’d cut the wristband off and the visitor would be free to mingle with the locals). She was quarantined for 5 days, tested negative afterwards and allowed to fly home.

There was only 1 flight / week with United (there was no other airlines) from Koror to Guam at the time. So, if you missed it, you were stuck in the island for another week. At least it wasn’t a 10-day quarantine that would make you to be stuck there for 2 weeks before you could fly home.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I don’t know what the airlines are doing but per the CDC you can return to the US without a negative test if you have “documentation of recovery” which is a positive test result no older than 90 days and a letter stating cleared to travel. How one gets this in another country is part of my question.

The problem with repeat testing is you can remain positive days to weeks after you are no longer considered contagious per US standards.

Ah, I understand now. Thanks.

So now I see what you're referring to, in the CDC disclosure and attestation form where there is a checkbox in Section 1, Part B that is an alternative to the negative-test checkbox in Part A: "I attest that I have tested positive for COVID-19 and have been cleared for travel by a licensed healthcare provider or public health official. The test was a viral test that was conducted on a specimen collected from me no more than 90 days before the flight's depature."

More here:

What if I recently recovered from COVID-19?​

​

People who have recovered from COVID-19 can continue to test positive for up to 3 months after their infection. CDC does not recommend retesting within 3 months after a person with COVID-19 first developed symptoms of COVID-19 (or the date their sample was taken for their first positive viral diagnostic test if their infection was asymptomatic).​

​

If you have had a positive viral test on a sample taken during the past 90 days, and you have met the criteria to end isolation, you may travel instead with your positive viral test results and a signed letter from a licensed healthcare provider or a public health official that states you have been cleared for travel. The positive test result and letter together are referred to as “documentation of recovery.”​

​

A letter from your healthcare provider or a public health official that clears you to end isolation, e.g., to return to work or school, can be used to show you are cleared to travel, even if travel isn’t specifically mentioned in the letter. The letter must have information that identifies you personally (e.g., name and date of birth) that matches the personal identifiers on your passport or other travel documents. The letter must be signed and dated on official letterhead that contains the name, address, and phone number of the healthcare provider or public health official who signed the letter.​

​

If you have recovered from COVID-19 but are not able to obtain documentation of recovery that fulfills the requirements, you will need to show a negative COVID-19 viral test result from a sample taken no more than 1 day before your flight to the US departs.​

​

Even if you have recovered from COVID-19, if you develop symptoms of COVID-19 you should isolate, not travel, and consult with a healthcare provider for testing recommendations.​

 

[tursiops]

Testing-Related Trip Report
==================
We were a group of eight flying from Tucson (TUS), BWI, and DCA to Bonaire on Dec 22/23, returning Dec 30. We were on DL and AA.

The inbound travel and testing info was previously reported in Post #749 (Covid surging in Bonaire) with an addendum in Post #770 (Covid surging in Bonaire).

We were supposed to get a “PCR” test, at our expense, on Day 5 of our visit. At the airport, they just said, “Don’t forget to take the Day 5 test.”

On Day 6 we needed an antigen test to get back into the US, and flew home on Day 7, Dec 30, a Thursday.

Seven of us did on-line scheduling with BonBida.com to do the Day 5 PCR test. One said “F*** it” and refused to take the test. I do not know if the test was actually “PCR” or if they just call all NAAT tests “PCR”, which seems to be prevalent…

We chose BonBida because it was just across the street from Buddy Dive where we were staying. We made appointments in the afternoon so we could do some diving in the morning and have lunch first.

As it turned out, our Day 5 test was the same day as the Day 6 going-home test for those leaving on Wednesday (the second-biggest travel day of the week), so BonBida was at Buddy Dive and we sneaked in on that to get our tests without having to walk across the street. The nurse/tech who dealt with us said, “You are taking a test today and another tomorrow? What is the point?” We said today is for Bonaire, tomorrow is for the US. She just rolled her eyes and stuck the swab up our noses.

We do not know the results of that $125 PCR test on Day 5. The results if negative go to Bonaire Public Health for their statistics; if positive, then they get hold of us and tell us we have to quarantine. We also do not know how long it takes them to get the results. You can imagine it takes 2-3 days, but by then we were gone.

Once before they had this Day 5 testing requirement and finally relaxed it for one-week visitors taking an antigen test on Day 6 to go home of Day 7; this doesn’t seem to have happened yet.

The Day 6 antigen test ($65 each) was uneventful. We had to walk across the street to get it, but they brought our certificates showing negative in about 15 minutes with no errors on them.

It was a bit of a struggle to get the required info and certificate photos into VeriFly, but worth the effort.

When we checked in at the airport AA wanted to see VeriFly, not paperwork. DL wanted to see paperwork. No one asked about the Day 5 test, but since we hadn’t gotten a phone call we were all presumptively negative.

All 8 of us got home, even with some flight delays getting back to ATL and to BWI. First the first time in my memory, the AA flights were on time and quite comfortable. Nobody lost any luggage.

So, far, no consequences apparent for the person who did not take the Day 5 test....

 

[tursiops]

Update
===========
I haven't reported on the infections data for almost two weeks. Unfortunately, during that time the curve turned and is now on an upward trajectory. For the first time, the majority of new cases (30 out of 59) are visitors to Bonaire. This does not bode well for entry restrictions, unfortunately.

They are still vaccinating, they are still requiring face masks in indoor spaces, but social distancing is not a Bonarian tradition. Face-mask compliance is variable.

 

[rmorgan]

Our trip three weeks from tomorrow seems both too soon and too far. The ramped-up test requirements, vaccine rate, the seemingly-less-vicious nature of Omicron, and the fact that only three people are in the hospital may militate against anything more. Plus, I wonder if these data reflect the first week's Day 5 PCR tests, which I'd guess would skew the likelihood of a positive test toward tourists tested (in theory) at 100% vs cases in the already-there folks, obviously tested at a dramatically-lower frequency.

But don't the data seem a little weird? On 12/30, which would have been the 5th day after the Saturday following the imposition of the 5-day test, positivity was 32 out of 55 tests--a positivity rate of 58%--but only four were "visitors of Bonaire." 14/38 visitors on 12/31, 23/48 on 1/1, 59/95--62% positivity rate!--today.

Regardless of traveler-vs-resident, these are really high positivity rates (five U.S. states are above 50%, and 41 are below 30%), but that aside, the total number of tests reported since 12/26 is 456; since everyone who arrived on the island since the 23d was subject to the Day 5, doesn't this imply that either arrivals are way down or lots of tourists are ignoring the Day 5? DL has six flights a week until Tuesday; AA has had seven since 12/16; UAL has two, not to mention KLM (daily) and TUI (5x/wk). That's 28 flights a week from the U.S. and Netherlands--even if there were only 50 people on each (which of course there weren't), that would presumably translate to 1,400 new tests.

(Are only positive tests being reported from the five-day set? If so, and if there were 100 passengers per flight but only <100 positives, that would suggest a low positivity rate)

Interesting times.

 

[tursiops]

But don't the data seem a little weird? On 12/30, which would have been the 5th day after the Saturday following the imposition of the 5-day test, positivity was 32 out of 55 tests--a positivity rate of 58%--but only four were "visitors of Bonaire." 14/38 visitors on 12/31, 23/48 on 1/1, 59/95--62% positivity rate!--today.

Not all those arriving are visitors. Our flight arriving Dec 23 had a number locals returning from wherever to visit family for Christmas and New Years.

Regardless of traveler-vs-resident, these are really high positivity rates (five U.S. states are above 50%, and 41 are below 30%), but that aside, the total number of tests reported since 12/26 is 456; since everyone who arrived on the island since the 23d was subject to the Day 5, doesn't this imply that either arrivals are way down or lots of tourists are ignoring the Day 5?

Bonaire has had very high positivity rates a number of times. Their testing is only of those who are symptomatic, which automatically means a high rate.

DL has six flights a week until Tuesday; AA has had seven since 12/16; UAL has two, not to mention KLM (daily) and TUI (5x/wk). That's 28 flights a week from the U.S. and Netherlands--even if there were only 50 people on each (which of course there weren't), that would presumably translate to 1,400 new tests.

Many reports of those flights from the US not being full, except on Weds and Sat. MOST of the visitors are NOT from the US. Latest published statistics suggest maybe 20-25% at most. High probability the Dutch visitors are the problem....

 

[rmorgan]

Not all those arriving are visitors. Our flight arriving Dec 23 had a number locals returning from wherever to visit family for Christmas and New Years.

Bonaire has had very high positivity rates a number of times. Their testing is only of those who are symptomatic, which automatically means a high rate.

Many reports of those flights from the US not being full, except on Weds and Sat. MOST of the visitors are NOT from the US. Latest published statistics suggest maybe 20-25% at most. High probability the Dutch visitors are the problem....

True, re the reduced passenger loads. DL has only about 40 seats occupied for tomorrow, but a bit over 50 for Wednesday and about 90 on Saturday. But even if there's an average of 30 passengers per flight, that'd be something like 5-600 PCR tests per week. (Noted, re returning residents vs. tourists, but the testing requirements appear to apply to "travelers to Bonaire," which I take to include everyone; maybe "visitors to Bonaire" excludes returning residents even though they have to take the test.)

Anyway, it would be useful to policy folks and interesting to armchair epidemiologists to know the total number of tests given, and positives vs. negatives, since the five-day PCR requirement went into effect. If the only "policing" of that is "remember to get your day five test," low compliance would not be surprising; when we were down in September and the day five antigen requirement was in effect, we were given dates and times for the test and reminded by email to show up. I guess that was logistically tough and financially burdensome.