Traveling with Costa Rica Health Alerts
Stay safe and healthy while traveling in Costa Rica understanding the level of risk of contracting a disease and the restrictions that legally must be followed with the color-coded health alerts!
read more closeThe health alerts, known locally as epidemiological alerts, are part of the Costa Rica National Disaster and Emergency Risk Management System ("Sistema Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias") known locally as SNPRAE.
The Department of Health, and the Costa Rican Department of Health and Human Services, locally known as "Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social" or by its Spanish abbreviation CCSS, led by The Costa Rica's Risk Prevention and Emergency Attention National Commission locally known as "Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias" or simply by its abbreviation CNE, are in charge of setting the health alerts.
Besides the new Corona virus (COVID-19), the most common viruses that you can be exposed while traveling in Costa Rica are Chikungunya, Dengue, Malaria and Zika. They are all transmitted by day-biting mosquitoes. The mosquitoes are most active during early mornings and dusk, making the risk of bites higher.
2020 Mostiquito-Borne Disease Health Report
Virus |
Mosquito |
Number of Cases |
Year |
|---|---|---|---|
Malaria |
Anopheles |
10 |
2020 up to Aug. 15 2020 |
Chikungunya |
Aedes |
42 |
2020 up to Aug. 15 2020 |
Zika |
Aedes |
106 |
2020 up to Aug. 15 2020 |
Dengue |
Aedes |
7,404 |
2020 up to Aug. 15 2020 |
Source: Health Department of Costa Rica
The most effective ways to prevent exposure to these viruses are:
Use mosquito repellent with DEET or Picaridin as active ingredient, and reapply as directed, if you are also using sunscreen, apply sunscreen first and insect repellent second
Dress with clothing that covers arms and legs in areas where mosquitoes are present.
Use condoms for sexual intercourse – Zika virus is sexually transmitted.
Corona Virus (COVID-19) Health Alerts
The Corona virus (COVID-19) has set new unprecedented rules to face a virus in Costa Rica. The rules are no different than you can experience at your home country.
During Covid-19 pandemic, travelers are not subject to the restriction imposed by the government except for wearing a face mask while you are indoors. Furthermore, tourist may also be affected by beach and national park access restrictions or lockdowns.
Green Alert
Threshold: Percentile less than 25; Score: 0
Indicates: Close to Containment
Government Intervention: Testing, contact tracing and isolation to suppress outbreaks
Yellow Alert
Threshold: Percentile between 25 and 50; Score: 1
Indicates: Potential community spread, mid hospital bed occupancy, and acceptable level of contact tracing and isolating
Covid-19 Government Interventions: Continue testing, contact tracing and isolation, as well as hand-washing, cough and sneeze etiquette, social distancing, masking, stay-home orders, event and mass gathering cancelations, beach and national park access restrictions, and driving hour rules except for permitted work, local food shopping or other permitted errands, or as authorized.
These are the specific restrictions for yellow alert:
Rules for Driving: based on the last digit of your vehicle's license plate.
Curfew: Weekdays 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. and Weekends 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Driving tickets for not following the rules: $184 USD (110,400 Costa Rican Colons (CRC))
You can drive on weekdays 5 a.m. to 10 p.m., if the last digit of your vehicle's license plate number is:
0, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9 on Mondays
0, 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, or 9 on Tuesdays
0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, or 9 on Wednesdays
0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 9 on Thursdays
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8 on FridaysYou can only drive weekends 5 a.m. to 8 p.m., if the last digit of your vehicle's license plate number is:
1, 3, 5, 7, or 9 on Saturdays
0,2, 4, 6, or 8 on Sundays
Exceptions:
Rental car vehicles – leased from an accredited rental car company.
Public buses, taxis, shuttles, tour vans or trucks
Garbage, crane, fuel, cargo, or fright trucks operating pursuant their work duties.
Employees whose work hours and schedules overlap with the driving rules – they must carry an employer's letter requesting the exception from the rules.
Drivers who have a health or life emergency, doctor's appointment or want to donate blood and need to travel to a hospital, clinic or pharmacy. Must show proof of appointment or prescription
Construction, funeral, delivery, armored, or security vehicles circulating to perform their job.
Vehicles that belong to the government or any of its institutions, to diplomats, religious delegates and foreign officials, to airport, ports and boarder control officers, to press and communication media, to health organizations.
Accredited transport vehicles for persons with medical needs or disabilities.
Drivers who are vacationing and need to go to the hotel. Must carry proof of hotel reservation is required.
Drivers who are taking their vehicles to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Must carry proof of appointment. Or, drivers who are taking someone to take a drive test – must show proof of appointment.
Drivers who are going to leave the country or pick up/ drop off someone at San Jose airport (Juan Santamaria International Airport). Must show purchased ticket as proof.
Drivers who need to pick up or drop off a minor at a day care accredited by the Comprehensive Care Council or the Department of Education. Must show proof issued by the daycare.
Personnel private vehicles from ambulance, red cross, fire fighters, 911 emergencies, The Costa Rica's Risk Prevention and Emergency Attention National Commission (CNE), The Costa Rican Department of Health and Human Services (CCSS), Department of Health, International institutions and any institution that is involved in the state of emergency of COVID-19. Driver must show its employee identification or be wearing his/her uniform.
Orange Alert
Threshold: Percentile between 50 and 75; Score: 3
Indicates: Escalating community spread, high hospital bed occupancy, low level of contact tracing and Isolating
Covid-19 Government Interventions: Continue testing, contact tracing and isolation, as well as hand-washing, cough and sneeze etiquette, social distancing, masking, stay-home orders, event and mass gathering cancelations, beach and national park access restrictions, and driving hour rules except for permitted work, local food shopping or other permitted errands, or as authorized. Broadcast precautions to lessen the impact on people with certain medical conditions (diabetes, heart or lung disease, hypertension, cancer, etc.) and risk of severe COVID-19 symptoms.
At the government's own discretion, the the driving rules, outdoor activities and attraction access restrictions time frame may be shorter than in yellow alert. For example, driving rules time is restricted to 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. only. Access to the beach 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. or no access at all.
Red Alert
Threshold: Percentile more than 75; Score: 4
Indicates: Extreme hospital bed occupancy, unchecked community spread
Interventions: To be determined.
Background
The Costa Rican Department of Health and Human Services, locally known as "Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social" or by its Spanish acronym CCSS, is in charge of the management and investment of the Costa Rica pension plans (usually defined-contributions plans) and all the social security administration. It runs the social and human development of the country by providing health services with a network of general hospitals, health centers, clinics, and physician-led team-based care (locally known as "Equipos Básicos de Atención Integral en Salud" or by its Spanish acronym EBAIS).
The Costa Rican Department of Health and Human Services (CCSS) subsists by government, employers and employees' monthly contributions.
The Costa Rican Department of Health and Human Services (CCSS) owns a national electronic disease surveillance system (known as "Sistema de Vigilancia Sindrómica") that collects and compiles patient-reported symptoms submitted by health practitioners from its health network facilities across the country.
The system works like this: when a patient checks in at a hospital, a clinic or a physician-led team-based care unit, the nurses or doctors observe the patient's symptoms and register the symptoms in the national electronic disease surveillance system. The data travel from the health center to the central computer servers, then the system compiles the data for the past 24 hours. Using some algorithms, the system decides which alert should be generated. The alert is then classified into three levels depending on the probability that an outbreak will happen C1 Alert (60%), Alert C2 (70%), and Alert C3 (82%).
The patient symptom report system allows the CCSS to predict when an outbreak is about to happen at the district or county level in Costa Rica and take the proper response.
What Metrics Are Used to Set Alerts?
Health alerts are issued based on these indicators:
66% of the metrics is determined by the risk ratio:
[County Level Risk Ratio] / [Nationwide Weekly Attack Rate]
County-level Indicator --
Calculated as county level risk ratio:
[New covid-19 cases reported in county] / [county population]
Nationwide Indicator:
Calculated as Weekly attack rate:
[Total new covid-19 cases in Costa Rica] /[Costa Rica's population]
33% depends on the slope and coefficient of variation: The weekly increase or decrease of active cases in each county
1% rests on the national outbreak reporting system, the percentage of hospital beds in the intensive care units available, local contextual assessments, and the basic reproduction number (Ro).
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