And while hundreds of Belizean families know those pains too well, in the United States, the number of grieving families is in the hundreds of thousands.
And that's what the US Centres for Disease Control has introduced a new COVID testing requirement for persons travelling to the US.
After January 26, everyone entering that country will have to have a recent negative COVID test.
That complicates things greatly for health authorities in Belize. Because everyone travelling to the states from Belize - locals and returning tourists - will need to get a test before travelling.
Now with flights to the US daily, it might seem to put a strain on the already limited testing equipment and facilities. After all, as it is, Belizeans sometimes wait weeks for their result after taking a PCR test.
But acting DHS Dr Melissa Diaz says that's not the case in fact they are prepared to provide testing for travelers going to the US, especially since they don't require a PCR test. We spoke to her via Zoom this morning:
Dr. Melissa Diaz - Acting DHS "We have actually already engaged with our team on the ground in many regions especially looking at the regions with the most tourist and of course Belize district where that international airport is, and we've also liaised with private medical partners as well in order for us to ensure that we can expand this testing to tourists and visitors coming to Belize. Many countries have different policies in place to ensure the safety of their nation, so we have been constantly doing testing for persons who require test, a negative PCR or rapid test to enter their country, so this was done on a case by case basis, it wasn't done on a wide scale, mostly for persons requesting the PCR test, basically an email is sent, the person is given an appointment to go and do the swabbing and the test result is emailed to them. Now with the CDC announcing that every person travelling, so every person going into the United States will need to present a negative test, they have specified if it needs to be a PCR test which is good for us because it actually says viral test, antigen test, and this is the rapid test."
Courtney Menzies "With the appearance of new strains that are coming out of the coronavirus worldwide will the government eventually make stricter requirements for visitors who want to come into the country?"
Dr. Melissa Diaz "There have always been a few different strains of this virus, but it has become concerning with the variant strain originating from the UK has been shown to be more infectious so that's the concern with that strain so we continuously revise the recommendations that we give at the airport and we are in continuous communication with our central health region team to make adjustments that would best suit us and protect us as a nation. The short answer is yes, we are looking at the procedures right now and to see how this can be improved and take into account that variant strain that may be all over the world."
A release this evening says, quote "The Ministry of Health and Wellness will expand testing to now include all persons requiring a negative COVID-19 test to enter other countries...the Ministry is in the final phase of preparation to ensure that COVID-19 PCR testing is available to persons departing the country. At this time, persons requiring a PCR test to depart Belize must make a formal request by emailing the Acting Director of Health Services at dhsoffice@health.gov.bz. To accommodate such requests, public testing sites will soon be available in the following districts:
Belize District - Belize City and San Pedro Town, Cayo District - San Ignacio Town, Stann Creek District - Placencia village."
