CHICAGO – People should stay home for Christmas and New Year or at least take safety precautions against coronavirus if they visit family and friends, state officials warned Wednesday.
Governor JB Pritzker and Dr. Ngozi Ezike, head of the Illinois Department of Public Health, have repeatedly advised everyone to stay home and only celebrate the winter holidays with members of their household. This warning was echoed on Wednesday, as officials noted that COVID-19 hospitalizations have recovered in recent days and are concerned about the post-holiday rise.
“The best way to avoid another increase in hospitalizations, another increase in deaths, another increase in new infections is to celebrate the holiday home with the family you currently live with,” Ezike said during the conference. press. “And I know it sounds crazy to ask again, and I know some of you will and I know some of you won’t or won’t.”
The best way to prevent disease, or prevent the transmission of the virus to your loved ones, is to stay home and practice social distancing, experts have advised. People should also continue to wear masks, wash their hands and take other safety measures.
The people suggested earlier by Ezike celebrate by video and phone calls and find ways to keep traditions in a socially distant way, such as delivering gifts to a loved one’s home but not opening them together.
Officials have also warned that a negative test will not protect anyone from the capture or spread of COVID-19. Some could get a false negative and, thinking they are safe, will reunite with the family, just to transmit the virus to them, officials have warned. Or someone can become infected after the test and then transmit the virus to the people they see.
People who still choose to meet should take at least safety precautions, such as wearing a mask around people outside their home, experts have warned.
“For those of you [who will gather,] I ask you to think of additional security measures that you can employ while traveling, as they come together, which can make visits a little safer than the safest option, ”Ezike said.
“For those who stay at home, I know you have to think about this tough year; we all reflect on this hard year and think of our loved ones. But we will make plans for next year and hope that many of the people who are here with us “will continue to be there next year.
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Pritzker said he is wary of a possible post-holiday wave. Earlier this month, he warned that the holidays could become the “deadliest moment of the pandemic” if people visit his family and friends.
Chicago saw a small bump in cases and its positivity rate after Thanksgiving, though it has since fallen. Illinois escaped a wave of post-Thanksgiving, even though other parts of the nation are being hit hard.
But hospitalizations have risen across Illinois in recent days, worrying Pritzker, especially as the holidays approach.
“When we get into … the Christmas and New Year holidays, my concern is that we’re likely to see some increase in Christmas and New Year in hospitalizations as well as in cases. So I’m worried that, ”he said.
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