BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – The Barbados government said it is discontinuing all coronavirus (COVID-19) related travel protocols for entering the island, approving also a number of fundamental changes to the COVID-19 directives that have governed the management of the pandemic since early 2021.

Acting Prime Minister Santia Bradshaw said that the measures go into effect Friday.

“Conscious of the direction in which the rest of the world is going, effective Friday, we will also discontinue all COVID-19-related travel protocols for Barbados. This means that we will be joining 95 per cent of the countries in the Western Hemisphere (that) preceded Barbados in going in that direction. There will therefore be no testing requirements for entering Barbados whether you are vaccinated or unvaccinated,” she said.

Bradshaw added that the wearing of masks generally will now be optional. However, mask-wearing remains mandatory for persons in nursing homes, private hospitals and senior citizens’ homes; persons in healthcare institutions including staff, visitors, clients and patients.

“All institutions where medical and dental services are provided. Persons in prison, including staff, prisoners and visitors. Staff and students at all educational institutions. All nurseries and daycare facilities for both children and adults and of course persons who have COVID-19 as well as persons who are travelling on public transportation,” she said.

The latest figures released by the authoritie show that the number of people in isolation facilities is 33, while 298 are in home isolation. As of September 21, there were 559 COVID-19-related deaths.

Since February 2020, Barbados has recorded 102,366 COVID-19 cases.

The data also showed that under the National Vaccination Programme for COVID-19, the total number of persons with at least one dose is 163,611 or 71.6 per cent of the eligible population.