NO RESTRICTIONS ON ENTRY OF PERSONS OR IMPORTED GOODS FROM ANY COUNTRY AT THIS TIME DUE TO MONKEYPOX

Basseterre, St. Kitts, 18^th July, 2022 (SKNIS): The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) in their latest recommendations regarding monkeypox have said that there should be no restrictions on the entry of persons or imported goods from any country at this time.

In a media release from the Ministry of Health of the Government of St. Kitts and Nevis it said “As of Sunday, July 17, 2022, there are no reported, suspected, probable, or confirmed cases of monkeypox in the Federation of St. Kitts & Nevis. Four (4) other CARICOM member states have been affected by the travel of infected individuals and close contacts so far. However, the monkeypox outbreak has not affected St. Kitts and Nevis yet and there are no plans for border closure.”

“Monkeypox is a rare disease caused by infection with the monkeypox virus which is part of the same family of viruses as smallpox. Monkeypox is rarely fatal. Monkeypox symptoms include fever, chills, muscle aches, swollen lymph nodes, exhaustion and a typical rash that looks like pimples or blisters inside mouth, on face and other parts of the body like hands, feet, chest, genitals, or anus. The rash goes through distinct stages before healing completely. The illness typically lasts 2-4 weeks. The monkeypox virus can spread from person to person through direct contact with infected person, touching contaminated clothes or linen of infected persons and mother-to-child transmission through pregnancy,” the media release stated.

“Monkeypox is a different virus from the virus that causes COVID-19. Monkeypox is much harder to transmit. There is a limited likelihood of spread of this disease in the Caribbean region,” it added.