Before flying to Barbados over the holidays, my wife and I obtained a rapid test from a Rochester NY facility operated by the county. Turns out the rapid test (from Abbvie), while a fairly good test, is not recognized as sufficiently reliable in many countries, Barbados included. So we had to spend about a week in quarantine at our hotel, until we had negative test results from two PCR tests, one at the airport, and another at a local clinic (all free of charge). My point is that a rapid test, while convenient (results in 20 minutes or less) may not be sufficient.
What would be more welcome is a more disciplined approach to wearing masks, maintaining social distance, and staying away from crowded areas. The Barbados government does a better job of requiring masks and social distancing, in addition to hand disinfectants at every commercial place of business, than is practiced in the U.S. As a result, they have fewer new cases, fewer hospitalizations, and many fewer deaths (per 100,00).
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