Holiday travelers urged to get tested for COVID-19 in 3-5 days
DALLAS - The nation’s top health experts are urging people who gathered for Thanksgiving to get tested for COVID-19.
While many Americans heeded the warnings, millions of others ignored calls to stay home and limit holiday gatherings to only people in their household.
Statistics show the nation’s airports were busier in the past week than they have been since the start of the pandemic and even more people traveled by car.
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Dr. Deborah Brix, the coordinator of the White House coronavirus taskforce, said people who traveled should assume they were exposed and should get tested in three to five days.
She said it is especially important for older people and those with underlying health conditions to get tested if they experience any symptoms.
Last week, the United States set a record for daily cases and hospitalizations. Health experts are now bracing to see the impact of Thanksgiving holiday travel.
“We are at a risky time because of the travel and again it’s not just the travel but it’s exposing people who have not been in their own pods. When they go somewhere different you have, you can be asymptomatic and still spread the virus and that’s what’s so dangerous,” Dr. Brix said.
Health experts also said it’s very important for people who traveled and gathered with others to wear a mask and avoid being around groups of people.
They also recommend limiting activities for about a week and only do what’s necessary.