Health commissioner advised Virgin Islanders to avoid nonessential travel amid mainland COVID-19 surge

Health Commissioner Justa Encarnacion said during the Government House weekly COVID-19 briefing on Oct. 19, 2020, that Virgin Islanders should avoid nonessential travel because of rising COVID-19 cases on the U.S. mainland.

Encarnacion said residents who had to travel and were not tested at their destination would be referred to a local lab for testing three to five days after returning and would be required to quarantine until receiving test results.

She also said all visitors to the territory age 5 and older were required to present either a negative COVID-19 antigen, molecular PCR or rapid test taken within five days of arrival, or a positive COVID-19 antibody test result taken within four months of arrival.

During the briefing, officials said the Virgin Islands was tracking 18 active cases. A total of 22,879 people had been tested, with 21,517 negative results and 1,335 positive results. Officials said 1,296 people had recovered and 21 had died.

Officials also said no COVID-19 patients were hospitalized at Juan F. Luis Hospital on St. Croix, while five COVID-19 patients were hospitalized at Schneider Regional Medical Center on St. Thomas.

The Virgin Islands Department of Labor said it had issued 42,489 unemployment insurance checks totaling more than $32.7 million, 27,780 Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation checks totaling about $42.7 million, and 3,264 Pandemic Unemployment Assistance checks totaling about $5.6 million, along with $1.7 million in Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue extended the deadline to file a 2018 income tax return or Form 1040 to receive a stimulus check to Nov. 21, 2020, and said it would continue making payments through Dec. 31, 2020.

Official source: https://www.vi.gov/health-commissioner-advises-against-any-unnecessary-travel-as-covid-19-cases-continue-to-surge-on-the-u-s-mainland/