“In the public square, we’re seeing a higher degree of vigilance and mitigation steps in many jurisdictions,” US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Robert Redfield said during a call with the nation’s governors on Tuesday. Audio of the call was obtained by CNN.
“But what we’re seeing as the increasing threat right now is actually acquisition of infection through small household gatherings,” Redfield said. “Particularly with Thanksgiving coming up, we think it’s really important to stress the vigilance of these continued mitigation steps in the household setting.”
Dr. Jonathan Reiner, professor of medicine at George Washington University, said Wednesday he’d advise people to consider not having indoor Thanksgiving dinners with others who aren’t in their immediate household.
“If you’re lucky enough to live in a part of the country where the weather will be moderate in November, do an outdoor Thanksgiving. (But) I think in the … places in the country where the winter comes early, I think you have to really be careful,” Reiner told CNN’s “New Day.”
“The consequences of this virus, particularly for older folks — the people that we really want to gather with on Thanksgiving — can be really dire,” he said. And frankly, I’d rather do a Zoom Thanksgiving with people that I love than expose them to something that might kill them,” he said.
“Next year is going to be much better. Let’s get through this, and let’s get through it safely.”
These comments come as the country’s seven-day average of new daily cases surpassed 51,000 Tuesday — the first time in more than two months that the figure was above 50,000, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
The average is now more than 48% higher than it was about a month ago, when it dipped to as low as 34,354.
And hospitalizations have been increasing nationwide. More than 36,000 Covid-19 patients were in US hospitals Tuesday, the highest number since the end of August.
Many states are seeing rise in case rates
As of Tuesday, 36 states had seen their Covid-19 cases rise by more than 10% in the past week versus the week prior, Johns Hopkins data show.
In Wisconsin, hospitalizations have nearly tripled in the past month, the governor said, adding that residents should do all they can to help get the virus under control and prevent the state’s healthcare system from being overwhelmed.
In Washington state, one public health official warned of a dramatic rise in cases.
“We’re having over 140 cases reported each day over the past week,” said Dr. Jeff Duchin, health officer for the Seattle and King County public health agency. “This is more than twice what we saw in late September.”
