The Peace Garden State requires incoming visitors from 31 states to self-quarantine
This story was updated at 6:28 a.m. on April 9, 2020.
President Trump has repeatedly said that he will not issue a federal domestic travel ban stop the spread of COVID-19, preferring instead to leave it to individual state governors to make that call. So far, more than 9 out of 10 governors have stepped up by issuing stay-at-home orders that tell residents to stay put.
But there’s another flatten-the-curve strategy gaining in popularity: Discourage interstate travel by telling all arrivals that they must self-quarantine for two weeks. If a majority of states did this, it would virtually halt interstate travel except for truckers delivering essential goods.
As of now, eight of the 48 contiguous states — Delaware, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, North Dakota, Rhode Island and Vermont — require all incoming travelers to self-quarantine for 14 days. (Alaska and Hawaii have similar orders, but only for travelers arriving by plane.) Notably, all 10 of these states also have statewide stay-at-home orders in place.
Another eight states — Arizona, Florida, Kansas, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas and West Virginia — have similar quarantine orders in place, but only for travelers coming from “hotspots” where COVID-19 is more prevalent.
Here’s a complete rundown of states with total or partial travel quarantine orders:
Alaska: All travelers arriving by plane in Alaska must self-quarantine for 14 days, going directly from the airport to a self-quarantined location.
Arizona: Travelers arriving “from an area with substantial community spread, including but not limited to the New York Tri-State area,” must self-isolate for 14 days.
Delaware: All travelers arriving from out of state must self-quarantine for 14 days.
Florida: Travelers arriving from the greater New York City area or Louisiana must self-isolate for 14 days.
Hawaii: All travelers entering the state by plane must self-quarantine for 14 days.
Kansas: Anyone who has traveled from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, New Jersey, New York or Washington state must self-quarantine for 14 days.
Kentucky: Arriving out-of-state visitors are asked to self-quarantine for two weeks.
Maine: All arriving visitors must self-quarantine for two weeks.
Massachusetts: Travelers entering the state must self-quarantine for 14 days.
Nevada: Arriving out-of-state visitors are asked to self-quarantine for two weeks.
North Dakota: Since April 8, anyone arriving from out of state is asked to self-quarantine for two weeks. Previously, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum had mandated a travel quarantine for incoming travelers from 31 states — about a third of the country — with “widespread community infection.”
Oklahoma: Travelers arriving from New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, California, Louisiana or Washington must self-quarantine 14 days.
Rhode Island: All arriving travelers are asked to self-quarantine for two weeks.
South Carolina: Travelers arriving from “virus hotspots,” including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and New Orleans must self-isolate for 14 days. Governor also signed an executive order prohibiting South Carolina hotels and other lodging facilities from accepting reservations from travelers from New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, three states under a CDC travel advisory.
Texas: Travelers driving across the state line from Louisiana must self-quarantine for 14 days. Air travelers arriving from Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Miami, Atlanta, Detroit, Chicago, California and Washington state must self-quarantine for 14 days.
Vermont: All incoming travelers must self-quarantine for 14 days.
West Virginia: Travelers arriving from “virus hotspots,” including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Louisiana must self-quarantine for 14 days.
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