While we all want to be done with Covid, it’s not quite done with us. In some places cases are on the rise with a new variant. In Thurston County, our cases and risk level have been up and down the past few months.
The Health & Safety Task Force is still working hard to create guidance for OUUC that is in alignment with our values, protects those who are vulnerable, and helps keep us connected. OUUC updates the risk level each week to reflect local conditions and inform how we gather for events. Stay tuned for updates as we take the current and changing situation into account.
On Wednesday, July 27 the New York Times published some guidelines for keeping up with this changing landscape and staying safe. I thought they were worth sharing.
Wishing us all good health and speedy recoveries.
Rev. Mary
From The New Your Times Coronavirus Briefing 7-27-22
Find your new community Covid indicators. Home testing has complicated the recording of case numbers, blurring real-time tracking of the virus. Instead, experts recommend checking the local news and tapping into your social networks. When more of your close contacts are getting Covid or being reinfected more frequently, it’s a good signal to take precautions.
(OUUC uses the CDC Community Tracker and CovidActNow for our local indicators.)
Max out your vaccines and boosters. Vaccines provide excellent protection against serious illness, and booster shots can amplify those benefits. But fewer than half of Americans have received boosters, and less than a third of adults who are eligible for their second booster — those who are immuno-compromised or above 50 — have received it.
Wear masks, and not just indoors. Wear good quality masks in public places. Experts agree that the outdoors can be considerably safer than indoor spaces. But even outdoors, the closer people are, the higher their risk of catching the virus. At bigger gatherings, such as outdoor concerts or weddings, you should wear a mask and monitor yourself for new symptoms for a few days afterward.
Keep rapid tests on hand — and use them. Bookend social events by testing before and three to five days after large gatherings. Each household can order three rounds of free tests — or 16 tests in total — from the government.