The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a new guidance Thursday that advised people not to travel for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday.
- “Travel may increase your chance of getting and spreading COVID-19. Postponing travel and staying home is the best way to protect yourself and others this year.”
The CDC provided seven questions to ask yourself if you’re planning to travel for Thanksgiving.
- Are you, someone in your household or someone you’re traveling to see at risk of getting very sick from COVID-19?
- Are cases increasing in your community or the place you’re visiting?
- Are hospitals in your community or the place you’re visiting getting overwhelmed?
- Does your home or destination have travel requirements or restrictions?
- Have you or the people you’re visiting had close contact with people outside their home?
- Do you plan to travel on bus, train or air where you won’t be 6 feet apart from someone else?
- Are you traveling with someone who doesn’t live with you?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, the CDC says you “should consider making other plans, such as hosting a virtual gathering or delaying your travel.”
The dangers of Thanksgiving
Dr. Celine Gounder, a member of Biden COVID-19 advisory board, recently told CNBC that Thanksgiving travel could provide a huge number of COVID-19 cases as the country is already dealing with a spike of coronavirus.
- “Right now we have a fire blazing and to me traveling and spending time with people over the holidays is sort of like pouring gasoline on a fire,” Gounder told CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” “It’s just not a good idea in the middle of a pandemic, especially at this juncture.”
Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told CNN that Thanksgiving will make people less safe.
- “When you go into the fall and winter, the weather’s colder, you tend to be indoors. When you’re indoors it becomes more problematic to be able to block the transmission of infection.”