New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
COVID jitters as holidays loom
Despite vaccines, CDC suggests virtual, outdoor parties are safer
Despite the widespread availability of vaccines against COVID-19, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued new guidance, recommending people hold virtual or outdoor family gatherings this holiday season.
According to its new guidance, the agency emphasized “safer ways to celebrate holidays” this fall and winter that include holding an outdoor celebration “with everyone at least 6 feet apart,” or hosting parties over video.
One suggestion for events held indoors said gatherers could open windows and doors to allow for ventilation, including putting a
fan in an open window to draw inside air out of the home.
Following the CDC guidance, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said Monday it’s “too soon to tell” whether people should gather in-person during the holidays.
“We’ve just got to concentrate on continuing to get those numbers down and not trying to jump ahead by weeks or months,” Fauci said during an appearance on CBS News’ Face the Nation.
The CDC’s guidance recommends people delay traveling for the holidays until they are fully vaccinated. The guidance was far less stringent than last year, when the agency recommended people get tested before traveling or forego travel altogether during the holiday season..
The recommendations come months after President Joe Biden said during his July 4 remarks that the nation was “closer than ever to declaring our independence from a deadly virus.”
Like the rest of the country, Connecticut has since been coping with a deadly wave of the virus driven by the highly infectious delta variant. The strain comprised all of the COVID-19 cases tested in the state in the most recent round of genetic sequencing.
The state’s testing and hospital data shows the wave may be subsiding in Connecticut. But the combination of colder weather and people spending more time indoors could also allow the virus to spread more easily in the coming months, experts warn.
Below is a summary of some of the highlights of the holiday guidance published by the CDC. The full guidance can be found on the CDC’s website.
In-person gatherings
The CDC said if people are going to gather in-person for the holidays, they should take steps to reduce the spread of the virus. Those steps include getting vaccinated, if eligible, and wearing masks in some circumstances. People who are not fully vaccinated and those over the age 2 years old should wear a mask indoors in public places, the CDC advises.
Additionally, existing guidance from the CDC recommends people in areas with moderate or high transmission of the virus should wear a mask indoors even if they have been fully vaccinated. The CDC’s COVID data tracker lists the county alert levels on the agency’s website.
In general, people at outdoor gatherings do not need to wear a mask, according to the CDC. But in areas with high transmission rates, people should mask up if it’s crowded or they are in close contact with people who are not fully vaccinated, the guidance said.
As for indoor gatherings, the CDC’s holiday guidelines suggest bringing in fresh air from outside “by opening windows and doors, if possible.”
“You can use a window fan in one of the open windows to blow air out of the window. This will pull fresh air in through the other open windows,” the guidance said.
Traveling during the holidays
The guidance said people should wait to travel until they are fully vaccinated. Unvaccinated travelers should test twice, once one to three days before traveling and the second time three to five days after traveling, the CDC said. Travelers should then isolate for seven days, or 10 days without the second test, the agency recommends.
The CDC’s recommendations for international travel vary by destination, but in general, suggest travelers should avoid areas where the level of COVID-19 is unknown, such as Antarctica, or very high. Air passengers coming to the U.S., including citizens, must show a negative test for the virus or documentation that they recovered from it before boarding a flight to the U.S.
Safer holiday plans
The CDC’s guidance opens with a series of “safer” holiday celebrations people can practice. They include decorating your home, hosting a video chat party with friends and family, holding an outdoor party with everyone 6 feet apart or dropping food off at friends and family members’ homes.