LA County ends mandated quarantines for fully vaccinated travelers

The county announced new travel guidelines after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week said that as long as coronavirus precautions are taken, including mask wearing, fully vaccinated people can take trips within the United States without getting tested for COVID-19 before or self-quarantining after.

Los Angeles County public health officials on Monday, April 5, ended the mandate for fully vaccinated travelers to quarantine upon their arrival here.

The county announced new travel guidelines after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week said that as long as coronavirus precautions are taken, including mask wearing, fully vaccinated people can take trips within the United States without getting tested for COVID-19 before or self-quarantining after.

Residents are considered fully vaccinated  two weeks after receiving a second dose of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccines, or two weeks after getting the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

“L.A. County and the CDC urge everyone to avoid nonessential travel at a time when there’s significant hot spots across the country and the world,” Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said. “And there’s significant risk from more infectious variants.”

In L.A. County, fully vaccinated residents who return with no symptoms are not required to quarantine or get tested for COVID-19, officials said.

Non-essential travelers who are not fully vaccinated must quarantine for seven days if they test negative for COVID-19 three to five days upon returning. They must quarantine for 10 days if they did not get tested for COVID-19 after arrival.

All travelers must self-monitor themselves for symptoms for at least 14 days and avoid being around people who are at increased risk for severe illness. If symptoms develop, they are to isolate and get tested.

Ferrer reminded residents that asymptomatic people are still capable of spreading the virus, so it’s important to not let up on safety precautions, especially for people who have not been vaccinated, leaving them at elevated risk.

For international travel, fully vaccinated people don’t need a COVID-19 test prior to travel — unless it is required by the destination — and do not need to self-quarantine after returning to the United States, according to the CDC. They should still have a negative COVID-19 test before boarding a flight to the US, and a follow up test three to five days after their return, the CDC noted.

The county’s rules still apply to international travel when arriving in L.A. County.