# Hawaii travel - CDC says Fully vaccinated people can travel safely within US



## djrsin (Apr 2, 2021)

I'm curious to see how this will be for traveling to Hawaii?  I wonder if the governor will change their pre travel testing since CDC is recommending fully vaccinated people don't need to do a covid test.


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## bnoble (Apr 2, 2021)

I suspect it will change in the not too distant future, but not without some mechanism to verify vaccination (and I have no idea how hard that will be.) I suspect just showing a vaccination card won't be enough---those are trivial to forge.


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## djrsin (Apr 2, 2021)

bnoble said:


> I suspect it will change in the not too distant future, but not without some mechanism to verify vaccination (and I have no idea how hard that will be.) I suspect just showing a vaccination card won't be enough---those are trivial to forge.



yes I agree.  I bet we would need some type of vaccination passport to show proof.


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## mjm1 (Apr 2, 2021)

Some, like my DW, are concerned that having a vaccine will be required to fly/travel to Hawaii and other domestic locations. We don’t plan to get vaccinated. I’m thinking a vaccine won’t be required, but they will continue to require the testing prior to departure like they currently do. Hopefully that is the case as many people don’t want the current vaccines. Time will tell.

Best regards.

Mike


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## slip (Apr 2, 2021)

mjm1 said:


> Some, like my DW, are concerned that having a vaccine will be required to fly/travel to Hawaii and other domestic locations. We don’t plan to get vaccinated. I’m thinking a vaccine won’t be required, but they will continue to require the testing prior to departure like they currently do. Hopefully that is the case as many people don’t want the current vaccines. Time will tell.
> 
> Best regards.
> 
> Mike



I think you are correct and that’s what will happen. We’ll see.


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## 1Kflyerguy (Apr 2, 2021)

mjm1 said:


> Some, like my DW, are concerned that having a vaccine will be required to fly/travel to Hawaii and other domestic locations. We don’t plan to get vaccinated. I’m thinking a vaccine won’t be required, but they will continue to require the testing prior to departure like they currently do. Hopefully that is the case as many people don’t want the current vaccines. Time will tell.
> 
> Best regards.
> 
> Mike



I agree that Hawaii will probably continue to allow for people with vaccination to travel with testing.  Not everyone can get vaccinated,  currently i don't think there are any shots approved for children.

Personally i trust the vaccine but can accept that many do not yet trust it, or may have other reasons that prevent them from receiving the vaccination.


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## brp (Apr 2, 2021)

mjm1 said:


> We don’t plan to get vaccinated. I’m thinking a vaccine won’t be required, but they will continue to require the testing prior to departure like they currently do. Hopefully that is the case as many people don’t want the current vaccines. Time will tell.



Also, as the substantial majority of people do intent to get vaccinated, those who choose not to will likely have an easier time getting tests,, and quick results, due to the reduced demand due to all the vaccinated folks.



1Kflyerguy said:


> I agree that Hawaii will probably continue to allow for people with vaccination to travel with testing.  Not everyone can get vaccinated,  currently i don't think there are any shots approved for children.
> 
> Personally i trust the vaccine but can accept that many do not yet trust it, or may have other reasons that prevent them from receiving the vaccination.



It will be interesting to follow this. Inasmuch as some vaccinations are required for kids to be able to attend school with other kids, there is precedent for requiring vaccination for certain activities. As said above, time will tell.

Cheers.


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## echino (Apr 2, 2021)

brp said:


> Inasmuch as some vaccinations are required for kids to be able to attend school with other kids, there is precedent for requiring vaccination for certain activities.



Once a Covid vaccine is fully approved, it may well become mandatory for certain activities. However, Covid vaccines have only been approved for emergency use. A full approval is many years away.


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## Pathways (Apr 2, 2021)

echino said:


> A full approval is many years away.


Actually, Pfizer plans to apply for full approval (BLA) by the end of April. 

Of course there is never a firm timeline on the FDA to act on the application, but given the political pressure, I would be shocked if they take longer than six months to approve.


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## GT75 (Apr 2, 2021)

mjm1 said:


> Some, like my DW, are concerned that having a vaccine will be required to fly/travel to Hawaii and other domestic locations. We don’t plan to get vaccinated. I’m thinking a vaccine won’t be required, but they will continue to require the testing prior to departure like they currently do. Hopefully that is the case as many people don’t want the current vaccines. Time will tell.


I certainly hope that those who are fully vaccinated will be allowed to travel and enter without requiring pre-COVID testing.   I don't plan to travel to Hawaii until that is an acceptable solution.


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## dougp26364 (Apr 2, 2021)

I don’t think you’ll ever see the U.S. make the vaccination mandatory for travel. I do believe you’ll see it as an option or an enhancement, much like TSA Pre check or Global entry. It will make travel “easier”.
I believe president Biden has stated he’s not going to institute a vaccine passport. I also believe there will be some areas that require proof of vaccination, a negative CoVid test or quarantine. I’m sure some countries will institute a “vaccine passport” or proof of vaccination, but that’s out of my control. 
What is within my control is the decisions I make. Vaccination, test before travel, quarantine or don’t travel. The choice is up to the individual. 
But I believe the reality is this will all be temporary anyway. A year? Two years? Who knows. But eventually there will have to be some sort of normalized travel.


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## echino (Apr 2, 2021)

dougp26364 said:


> But I believe the reality is this will all be temporary anyway. A year? Two years? Who knows. But eventually there will have to be some sort of normalized travel.



I think some travel restrictions are here to stay and will never go away. Maybe mandatory testing, vaccination, masks, something else? But it's going to be a new normal and not going back to previous normal. Just like after 9/11 with the TSA, security, etc, it's here to stay, and it has never gone to the previous normal.


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## dioxide45 (Apr 2, 2021)

brp said:


> It will be interesting to follow this. Inasmuch as some vaccinations are required for kids to be able to attend school with other kids, there is precedent for requiring vaccination for certain activities. As said above, time will tell.


Not sure why I keep seeing this. As far as I know, most states have exemption for religious or philosophical reasons for your child to not have vaccines and still attend school.


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## CO skier (Apr 2, 2021)

echino said:


> I think some travel restrictions are here to stay and will never go away.


Unless the Covid-19 virus "goes away" after roughly 18 months, like the 1918 pandemic did without a vaccine.  6 months more will be critical, since a 2021 Covid-19 vaccine may give us an advantage that the 1919 population did not have.


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## VacationForever (Apr 3, 2021)

My take is that COVID vaccine will be built into the flu vaccine and maybe will get on a twice a year vaccination schedule.  Pfizer reported that their vaccine is effective for at least 6 months.


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## Steve Fatula (Apr 3, 2021)

I am also thinking Hawaii may well act on the CDC guidance. The questions are of course when and how. It is completely unknown how long protection will last. I suspect Moderna and Pfizer will likely behave similarly. We'll see about J&J. I'm hoping for a vacinnated exception to the test for upcoming Kauai trip late summer, but if I have to get tested, of course I will. I'll likely have to go a long way to get tested, though I have not looked into it yet as I suspect things will be changing by then.


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## Ken555 (Apr 3, 2021)

VacationForever said:


> My take is that COVID vaccine will be built into the flu vaccine and maybe will get on a twice a year vaccination schedule. Pfizer reported that their vaccine is effective for at least 6 months.



I haven’t read this possibility of a covid/flu combined shot. Could you post a link to an article about this option?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## brp (Apr 3, 2021)

dioxide45 said:


> Not sure why I keep seeing this. As far as I know, most states have exemption for religious or philosophical reasons for your child to not have vaccines and still attend school.



Well, the one example I did read about was Oregon, which does require certain vaccines for kids to attend schools. Perhaps they are the exception as I've not looked through all states. But that would seem to set some precedent.

Cheers.


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## alwysonvac (Apr 3, 2021)

Keeping my fingers crossed that Hawai’s travel requirements doesn’t become more restricted (self quarantine for 7 days after travel) for non vaccinated travelers based on yesterday’s CDC’s recommendation. I would have the 2nd dose before my upcoming trip but just a few days short of the full two weeks requirement .









						COVID-19 and Travel
					

CDC travel recommendations during the COVID-19 pandemic.




					www.cdc.gov


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## VacationForever (Apr 3, 2021)

Ken555 said:


> I haven’t read this possibility of a covid/flu combined shot. Could you post a link to an article about this option?
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


Speculation.


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## VacationForever (Apr 3, 2021)

Steve Fatula said:


> I am also thinking Hawaii may well act on the CDC guidance. The questions are of course when and how. It is completely unknown how long protection will last. I suspect Moderna and Pfizer will likely behave similarly. We'll see about J&J. I'm hoping for a vacinnated exception to the test for upcoming Kauai trip late summer, but if I have to get tested, of course I will. I'll likely have to go a long way to get tested, though I have not looked into it yet as I suspect things will be changing by then.


Pfizer has reported that their vaccine is effective for at least 6 months. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news...90-effective-least-6-months-study/4830501001/

I just received my 2nd dose on April 1.  Our travel to Hawaii is on April 18 and we hope that Hawaii will have manual checking of vaccine card ("passport") trans-Pacific travelers by then.  There are 4 of us and 3 would have more than 14 days after the last dose.  The 4th person will get her second dose on April 9 and if vaccine passport program is implemented by then, she will still need to get a test.


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## magmue (Apr 3, 2021)

According to yesterday's article from Beat of Hawaii, they're expecting an update from Governor Ige early next week.  Apparently the state has been working with a company called First Vitals to do vaccine verification, but the company's website is flakey in multiple ways.


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## fernow (Apr 3, 2021)

Interesting world.  Why would anyone be apposed to a Vaccine Passport?  Maybe it could be combined with your Party papers and you could just show those when you travel... or vote or conduct business etc.  Seems OK.  IF you choose not to "whatever", that's OK.  Nobody is forcing you to comply.   You just voluntarily surrender your right to do anything.  It has worked fine in other countries, minus the no force thing.  Like it or not, it's where we're going, for the greater good,  so Get on Board!


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## Steve Fatula (Apr 3, 2021)

VacationForever said:


> Pfizer has reported that their vaccine is effective for at least 6 months. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news...90-effective-least-6-months-study/4830501001/



I agree they did. What I am saying is today it's 6 months, 6 months from now it could well be it's at least a year, etc. They simply don't know yet how long was what I was trying to say. Until time has passed and they can re-evaluate, they don't know. I expect it will be much longer than 6 months.

I think Hawaii will change it, then when we'll see I guess. Mine is late August, so a lot of time for me to luck out.


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## MommaBear (Apr 3, 2021)

brp said:


> Well, the one example I did read about was Oregon, which does require certain vaccines for kids to attend schools. Perhaps they are the exception as I've not looked through all states. But that would seem to set some precedent.
> 
> Cheers.


Maine voted to get rid of philosophical excuses for not vaccinating, as we had one if the highest exemption rates in the country and lots of pertussis outbreaks. Flu vaccine is not one of the mandatory ones, however.


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## lynne (Apr 3, 2021)

dioxide45 said:


> Not sure why I keep seeing this. As far as I know, most states have exemption for religious or philosophical reasons for your child to not have vaccines and still attend school.


There are five states that do not allow religious or personal belief exemptions for attending school:
Maine/New York/W. Virginia/Mississippi/California


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## Ken555 (Apr 3, 2021)

VacationForever said:


> Speculation.



That’s what I thought, but gave you the benefit of the doubt and a chance to post supporting docs. 


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk


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## csodjd (Apr 4, 2021)

fernow said:


> Interesting world.  Why would anyone be apposed to a Vaccine Passport?  Maybe it could be combined with your Party papers and you could just show those when you travel... or vote or conduct business etc.  Seems OK.  IF you choose not to "whatever", that's OK.  Nobody is forcing you to comply.   You just voluntarily surrender your right to do anything.  It has worked fine in other countries, minus the no force thing.  Like it or not, it's where we're going, for the greater good,  so Get on Board!


Well, the Governor of Florida is clearly opposed. I think the thinking is that the “vaccine passport“ makes it easier to “discriminate” against people that are not vaccinated. In Florida the Governor wants the entire state at full-normal. No requirements for anything. Vaccine. Masks. Social distancing. Etc. By barring a vaccine passport (as he’s done by executive order) he largely forces a full-open. Travel to Florida, assume the risk. 

Most of the world is working toward a “passport.” Some cruises are advertising “vaccinated only” now. 

The only thing that’s certain is that nothing is certain yet. Does seem to me that being vaccinated is a LOT more reliable than a negative test 3 days before you travel.


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## dougp26364 (Apr 8, 2021)

Just to add something else to debate on this thread:

I work in the health care field and we were able to get our vaccinations this past December. One of our staff, who also received the vaccine in December, has tested positive for CoVid. 

This is not necessarily unexpected. We know that a small percentage of people will be no -responders to various vaccines. There have also been cases of individuals getting chicken pox more than once. 

This is not to say that you should not get the vaccine but it does illustrate that, even with a so called vaccine passport, it’s not foolproof. It also illustrates by example why heard immunity is so important. It protects those who can’t protect themselves by limiting circulating viruses.


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## Tamaradarann (Apr 8, 2021)

dougp26364 said:


> Just to add something else to debate on this thread:
> 
> I work in the health care field and we were able to get our vaccinations this past December. One of our staff, who also received the vaccine in December, has tested positive for CoVid.
> 
> ...



While I agree with your statement that "This is not to say that you should not get the vaccine...." it is an understatement in view of your further comment about the importance of herd immunity.  The only way we are going to get to herd immunity is thru vaccination unless alot of people are going to go out of their way to get infected so they get some immunity.  Since I and the CDC doesn't recommend that nor do I think most people would do that, SO GET THE VACCINE!


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## lynne (Apr 8, 2021)

I do not think a vaccine passport will be coming to Hawaii very soon.  Maui will be instituting a second test on arrival.  Big Island has been doing this since October.





__





						Maui County to require second, post-arrival COVID-19 test
					

Maui County will soon require a second COVID-19 test upon arrival in hopes of learning how many traveling residents and visitors are contributing to cases on Maui. Trans-Pacific travelers participating in the Safe Travels program — which allows travelers to bypass quarantine with a negative test...




					www.mauinews.com


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## 1Kflyerguy (Apr 8, 2021)

lynne said:


> I do not think a vaccine passport will be coming to Hawaii very soon.  Maui will be instituting a second test on arrival.  Big Island has been doing this since October.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I saw this news this morning, a couple of other articles are estimating an passport implementation sometime this summer.  Hawaii has taken such a cautious approach so far, i never really expected them to move quickly on the whole vaccine passport idea,


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## VacationForever (Apr 8, 2021)

dougp26364 said:


> This is not necessarily unexpected. We know that a small percentage of people will be no -responders to various vaccines. There have also been cases of individuals getting chicken pox more than once.



I have never gotten chicken pox even though I was directly exposed to people who had active chicken pox at various points in my life.  In the 90s, I had the chicken pox vaccine.  My doctor tested me for titers in 2005 and I was negative.  He then gave me another 2-dose chicken vaccine again.  In 2015, I enquired about getting a shingles vaccine and I was tested again and found that I did not take the chicken pox vaccines.  At that point he said it was pointless to vaccinate me again for chicken pox and shingles vaccine would not apply to me as well.  He said just stay away from people with chicken pox and shingles.


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## MommaBear (Apr 8, 2021)

lynne said:


> I do not think a vaccine passport will be coming to Hawaii very soon.  Maui will be instituting a second test on arrival.  Big Island has been doing this since October.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


That second rest is people coming transpacific


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## nalismom (Apr 8, 2021)

MommaBear said:


> That second rest is people coming transpacific


Well that includes everyone coming from the 48 states to Maui....

Actually 49...I forgot Alaska☺


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## davidvel (Apr 8, 2021)

dougp26364 said:


> Just to add something else to debate on this thread:
> 
> I work in the health care field and we were able to get our vaccinations this past December. One of our staff, who also received the vaccine in December, has tested positive for CoVid.
> 
> ...


Was that person sick? If so how bad?


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## dougp26364 (Apr 8, 2021)

davidvel said:


> Was that person sick? If so how bad?



That I don’t know and probably never will. HIPPA protects those rights. All I know is that’s the reason we can’t ditch the masks despite low positivity rates. 

What I’d really like to know is, how many employees are fully vaccinated, and how many test positive afterwards. I’d like to calculate the infection rate among all the employees that are fully vaccinated.


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## KS2beach (Apr 9, 2021)

djrsin said:


> yes I agree.  I bet we would need some type of vaccination passport to show proof.


I have heard Cerner will have some app-program that will be able to load your proof of vaccine on to show when traveling (our fingers crossed its true) we are heading to Hawaii in June


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## geist1223 (Apr 9, 2021)

dougp26364 said:


> What I’d really like to know is, how many employees are fully vaccinated, and how many test positive afterwards. I’d like to calculate the infection rate among all the employees that are fully vaccinated.



In Oregon the State Health Department has released the following out of the 700,000 fully vaccinated there have been 168 break through cases of people coming down with COVID19 or .00024%. Of the 168 3 have died. So the rate of death out of the 700,000 is .0000042857 %. The rate of death out of the 168 break through cases is .0178571429%.


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## Mongoose (Apr 9, 2021)

geist1223 said:


> In Oregon the State Health Department has released the following out of the 700,000 fully vaccinated there have been 168 break through cases of people coming down with COVID19 or .00024%. Of the 168 3 have died. So the rate of death out of the 700,000 is .0000042857 %. The rate of death out of the 168 break through cases is .0178571429%.



The 700,000 stat you use doesn't make a lot of sense.  Using that logic, the death rate for all Americans is .15%.    Regarding your math 3 out of 168 is 2% not .01785%.  Depending on the age of those 3, the death rate could be more or less than the non-vaccinated population.


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## controller1 (Apr 9, 2021)

geist1223 said:


> In Oregon the State Health Department has released the following out of the 700,000 fully vaccinated there have been 168 break through cases of people coming down with COVID19 or .00024%.



Math check: That is actually 0.024% or 100x your calculation. Yes, still small.


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## Mongoose (Apr 9, 2021)

controller1 said:


> Math check: That is actually 0.024% or 100x your calculation. Yes, still small.


Right.  But that is not of 700,000 people that were exposed, just a population set of those vaccinated for a small period of time.  Overall in the us, there has just a 9% positivity rate against the US population over 14 months.


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## lynne (Apr 10, 2021)

Gov. David Ige clears the way for quarantine exemption for fully vaccinated travelers arriving in Hawaii
					

Hawaii appears headed toward establishing an exemption from travel testing and quarantine rules for fully vaccinated trans-Pacific passengers.




					www.staradvertiser.com
				




Pertinent text from Gov. Ige's 19th emergency proclamation:
Self-Quarantine Exceptions: 
The following persons entering the State shall not be subject to self quarantine: 
(1) persons who enter by recreational boats into the State’s small boat (non-commercial) harbors which have been at sea for at least 10 consecutive days before entering State waters and have no persons on board who are ill or are exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19; 
(2) persons who, prior to departure to the State, upload into the State’s Safe Travels program or otherwise provide dated confirmation received by the traveler prior to departure from a DOH approved COVID-19 testing facility (“Trusted Testing Partner”) of a negative test result, using a DOH-approved form, from an observed test administered to the traveler within 72 hours from the final leg of departure; or 
(3) upon the establishment of an exception by the Director of HIEMA, persons who, prior to departure to the State, upload into the State’s Safe Travels program or otherwise provide validation that they have completed a vaccine regimen approved by DOH. *This third exception is not available as of the date of this Proclamation, requires action by the Director of HIEMA and details will be posted at https://hawaiicovid19.com/.* Persons under the age of five accompanied by a traveler who meets existing test exceptions are not required to obtain a test prior to arrival. 9 of 36 A county may require travelers five years and older to obtain a subsequent test after arrival into the State, which test shall be paid for and administered by the county at a county-designated site. Persons who arrive into a county that requires a subsequent test do not need to self-quarantine prior to obtaining the subsequent test. A county requiring travelers to obtain this subsequent test shall integrate the test protocol into the State’s Safe Travels program and implement it through county emergency orders, rules or proclamations approved in accordance with Section I of this Proclamation.

Full Proclamation attached.


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