Mexico Is Reassuring Travelers

The Wall Street Journal
Mayo 6 de 2009

Health officials see some evidence that the spread of swine flu may be starting to ebb. Mexico's health minister said Monday that the country plans to lower public alerts. Nevertheless, the outbreak has taken a toll on travel destinations in Mexico and even Central America (where very few swine flu cases have been found). Some flights are almost empty, as are many hotel rooms.

Continental Airlines reduced its capacity on routes to Mexico by 50% through the end of the month amid weak demand.

But is it safe to go now? The Mexican government is reassuring visitors that Mexico City is ready to be reopened for business. As long as travelers take standard precautions like washing their hands and avoiding obviously ill people they should be fine, said Alan Magill, a Washington, D.C.-based infectious disease specialist and president-elect of the International Society of Travel Medicine.

"If someone offered me an all-expenses-paid trip to Cancun, would I go? Yes, absolutely,"

said Gerald Evans, an infectious-disease specialist at Queen's University in Ontario and president of the Association of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Disease Canada. The exception: Infants, the elderly, people with compromised immune systems and others typically at high risk of serious flu complications should stay at home, he said.