The below message was sent to UI students and parents on Friday, March 6, 2020.

As the University of Iowa continues to monitor and prepare for the COVID-19 outbreak, we encourage members of the UI community to strongly consider deferring non-essential personal international travel during spring break and in the months ahead.

The Board of Regents suspended university-sponsored international travel for 30 days effective March 5.

If you do choose to travel internationally on a personal trip, please consider the below information and guidelines, which are intended to aid the university in supporting your health and safety.

• Research your destinations to check for travel warnings issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of State. At this time, the CDC recommends avoiding all non-essential travel to any country with a CDC Level 3 travel warning due to COVID-19.

• Review CDC guidance on preventative measures you can take to stay healthy, as well as its specific health guidance for travelers.

• If you choose to travel to a country with a CDC Level 3 travel warning due to COVID-19 (see updated list here), you will be expected to self-isolate for 14 days upon your return (this means staying primarily indoors, avoiding direct contact with others, and not resuming social activities until the self-isolation period ends). Please take this seriously and follow all instructions you receive from health officials at your port of entry. In alignment with guidance from the Iowa Department of Public Health and the CDC, the university will also ask you to share your plans to self-isolate upon your return using this link. Find additional details about self-isolation on this page.

Carefully weigh the risks and benefits of any international travel, and keep the following in mind:

• Countries you visit may decide to implement travel restrictions with very little notice, impacting your ability to return to campus.
• Airlines may cancel/limit flights in or out of a country or region.
• Additional quarantine or isolation measures may be applied by the U.S. and other countries. Re-entry to the U.S. could be restricted.
• Please keep in mind that the CDC's self-isolation policy could be extended to other countries as the outbreak continues to evolve.

If you choose travel to an area with widespread COVID-19 transmission and develop a fever, cough, or shortness of breath, contact the UI Student Health Nurseline (319-335-9704) and inform them of your travel history and symptoms. After hours and on weekends, call the UI Hospitals & Clinics Integrated Call Center (319-384-8442 or toll free at 800-777-8442). 

For continued updates on COVID-19, please see coronavirus.uiowa.edu.

We appreciate your diligence in taking preventative measures and hope you enjoy your spring break.