WASHINGTON — Overzealous is the rule. That’s the advice from infectious disease experts now preparing a nation on the precipice of an uninhibited pandemic.
Perhaps indicative of the heightened precautions, doctors are advising 14 days of quarantine, followed by the clearance of a negative COVID-19 test, if plans are intractable to spend Thanksgiving 2020 and the holiday weekend with a different household.
Quarantine, in this sense, doesn’t mean staying constantly locked indoors. But it does mean leaving only for outdoor exercise, exceedingly minimal trips for groceries, and bare interaction with people outside of one’s home.
“That is the gold standard, if you quarantine yourself for two weeks, and then get tested,” Dr. Glenn Wortmann, chief of infectious diseases at MedStar Washington Hospital Center, said. “But you know, that may not happen. So we can do the easy things: wear a mask when you're in public, socially distance from other people -- bread and butter things we have been doing that drove this down in the spring.”
Essentially, a Thanksgiving meal is possible in this pandemic, but with necessary adjustments for 2020.
“In general, if you're living with a group of people, on a day-to-day basis, you can have Thanksgiving with those people,” Wortmann said. “You're around them all the time. That's your nuclear group, your core group.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now out with a new website on best practices for Thanksgiving. The guidance recommends:
- Wear a mask with two or more layers
- Stay at least 6 feet away from others who do not live with you
- Bring your own food, drinks, plates, cups, and utensils.
- Avoid going in and out of the areas where food is being prepared or handled, such as in the kitchen.
- Use single-use options, like salad dressing and condiment packets, and disposable items like food containers, plates, and utensils.