United and American Offering Refunds to Pregnant Passengers Due to Zika Virus

Donald Wood
by Donald Wood
Last updated: 10:30 AM ET, Wed January 27, 2016

According to the Associated Press, both United Airlines and American Airlines are getting ahead of concerns surrounding Zika Virus, allowing pregnant women to get refunds for previously scheduled flights to countries affected by the virus in South and Central America.

For United Airlines, the refunds cover any country covered by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) travel notice, and for American Airlines, pregnant women who booked flights to El Salvador, Honduras, Panama or Guatemala will be eligible for a refund.

READ MORE: CDC Expands Travel Warning for Zika Virus

As for the other airlines, Delta Air Lines announced it was monitoring the Zika virus situation, but was not offering waivers at the moment. Southwest Airlines said it was not making changes to its cancellation policies, and JetBlue Airways and Spirit Airlines could not comment on whether they would be offering refunds or not.

The CDC announced Tuesday that it had expanded its travel alert for pregnant women to include the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Dominican Republic. In total, the reach of the Zika virus and the CDC warning extends to 22 other destinations.

READ MORE: How Travel is Reacting to Zika Virus

Here is a full list of other area affected by the CDC travel warnings, via The AP:

• In Central and South America: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname and Venezuela.

• In the Caribbean: Barbados, Guadeloupe, Haiti, Martinique, St. Martin and Puerto Rico.

• And Cape Verde, off the coast of western Africa, and Samoa in the South Pacific.


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