CDC adds six countries to Level 4 COVID-19 travel risk

Feb. 14 (UPI) -- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added six countries Monday to the highest level of its COVID-19 travel advisory risk list.

The CDC added Azerbaijan, South Korea, French Polynesia, Comoros, Belarus and the French archipelago of Saint Pierre and Miquelon to its "Level 4: Very High" advisory, the highest possible rating.

All six destinations were at Level 3 last week, which denotes a "High" risk for COVID-19.

"Avoid travel to these destinations. If you must travel to these destinations, make sure you are fully vaccinated before travel," says the CDC website.

The move brings the total number of countries with the CDC's highest rating to 140, more than any other section.

Destinations are added to Level 4 if and when they reach a rate of more than 500 cumulative new cases per 100,000 people over the previous 28 days.

Also Monday, the CDC added four countries to Level 3, or "High" risk. El Salvador, Eswatini, Indonesia and Mauritius now all have the agency's second-highest rating.

There are only seven destinations on Level 1, which come with a "Low" risk of COVID-19. Four destinations appear on Level 2 with a "Moderate" travel risk.