PANAMA CITY: Panama's Health Ministry announced on Saturday, a temporary ban on the entry of people from all South American countries starting from Wednesday after a COVID-19 case of the Brazilian variant was confirmed.
"We are temporarily suspending the entry into the country of any person who has stayed or transited through any South American country in the past 15 days, except for nationals and residents of Panama, who upon entering must take a COVID-19 test and enter quarantine," Sputnik reported citing sources.
The new restrictions on travel will come into force on Wednesday, March 31, the ministry specified, adding that the measures were prompted by the discovery of the Brazilian strain in the country.
"The P1 Sars Cov-2 variant was detected in the country in a positive patient from Brazil," the ministry said.
It added that the foreigner had been living in Panama, but travelled to her country of origin and tested positive for COVID-19 upon her return to Panama from Brazil.
According to the latest health ministry data, Panama has a total of 353,497 confirmed coronavirus cases, while the country's COVID-19 death toll stands at over 6,000, reported Sputnik.