The United States has lifted an advisory from March that said US citizens should avoid all international travel due to the coronavirus pandemic. But American travellers are still restricted or banned in many parts of the world, including in the European Union.

The State Department on Thursday said it would instead resume travel services considering each country on a case-by-case basis.

The announcement comes as President Donald Trump seeks a quick return to normal in the United States, which has suffered by far the highest number of deaths from COVID-19.

“With health and safety conditions improving in some countries and potentially deteriorating in others, the Department is returning to our previous system,” the State Department said in a statement.

“We continue to recommend US citizens exercise caution when travelling abroad due to the unpredictable nature of the pandemic.”

Under the new ratings, the United States is still advising precautions for most countries.

Among the few recipients of the “Level 1” ranking — which means no special concerns for travel — were Taiwan, which has won wide acclaim for its handling of the pandemic, and Australia.

The United States gave a Level 3 status — which means to reconsider travel — to many allies including Britain, France and Germany.

It kept the Level 4 warning to avoid all travel for India, which has seen growing cases of COVID-19.

TROUBLE AHEAD

Meanwhile, White House health experts have warned that even small rises in the percentage of people testing positive for COVID-19 in some US cities could mean trouble and urged local leaders to remain vigilant to avoid a surge.

“This is a predictor of trouble ahead,” Dr Anthony Fauci, the nation`s top infectious diseases official, told CNN on Thursday.

The U.S. death toll is now over 159,000 — the most in the world — with 4.8 million known cases.

Fauci was speaking after White House coronavirus task force coordinator, Dr. Deborah Birx, identified new areas of concern in a telephone call with state and local officials on Wednesday.

Baltimore and Atlanta remain at a “very high level,” as well as Kansas City, Portland, Omaha and the Central Valley in California, Birx said on the call, a recording of which was obtained by the journalism nonprofit Center for Public Integrity.

White House data shows small increases in the percentage of positive coronavirus tests in Chicago, Boston, Detroit and Washington. Those cities need to “get on top of it,” Birx said.

Even where most people are doing things right, Fauci said, those who do not wear masks or follow social distancing guidelines can keep the virus smoldering.

The US outbreak, once centered around highly populated New York City, has since spread to communities from coast to coast, driven in part by summer vacation travel.

Trump has, meanwhile, urged state and local authorities to re-open public schools for in-person learning to help get Americans back to work and spending again. A strong economy is one of the pillars of Trump`s campaign for re-election on November 3.

The decision to reopen schools took into account the “inevitable moment” that COVID-19 would be detected and contact tracing plans triggered.

(with inputs from agencies)