- A CDC study recently identified restaurants, gyms, and offices as particularly risky places to go in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
- The study found that 40.9% of coronavirus patients went to a restaurant in the two weeks preceding their positive diagnosis.
- Other places to avoid, per the CDC, include gyms, hair salons, and office spaces.
To put it mildly, the U.S. response to the coronavirus has been less than stellar. To date, the U.S. has seen more coronavirus-related deaths than any other country on the planet and, on top of that, there’s no indication that things are poised to get better anytime soon.
As it stands now, the rate of new coronavirus cases is rising rapidly across many states. According to health experts, this dynamic can be attributed to a few factors. For starters, some people still refuse to adhere to basic coronavirus safety guidelines such as wearing masks in public. Second, businesses have started re-opening en masse all across the country, a fact which inevitably increases the odds that individuals will be exposed to the coronavirus in the first place.
To the latter point, there are some venues in particular that people should try and avoid at all costs. Truth be told, just because a business is open doesn’t necessarily make it a smart idea to patronize it.
According to the CDC, there are six places in particular people should avoid going in the midst of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. That list includes restaurants, offices, salons, gyms, bars/coffee shops, and religious gatherings.
In putting together the list, the CDC took a look at symptomatic coronavirus patients over a full month and examined what percentage of them attended various types of establishments leading up to their positive diagnosis. When the dust settled, the study found that 40.9% of patients had been to a restaurant during the two week period preceding their positive diagnosis. Meanwhile, 24% of patients had been to an office, 15.6% of people had visited a salon, 8.5% of patients had been to a bar or coffee shop, 7.8% of people had visited a gym, and 7.8% of people had attended church or another type of religious gathering.
The list above shouldn’t come as much of a surprise as it aligns closely with a list of activities Dr. Fauci advised people to avoid last month. Recall, Fauci said that the following 8 activities and places should be avoided whenever possible.
- Indoor gatherings
- Outdoor gatherings
- Bars
- Restaurants
- Air Travel
- Public Transportation
- Going to the Gym
- Sharing food
The first point is especially worth harping on given that indoor gatherings have been found to be behind any number of superspreader events. Not too long ago, for example, a karaoke party at an indoor social club in Florida caused upwards of 50 coronavirus infections, two deaths, and multiple hospitalizations.
While some people might mistakenly assume that attending a private indoor gathering with close friends and family is safe, the reality is quite the opposite. What researchers have come to find out is that people at indoor gatherings tend to have a false sense of security and, as a result, are less likely to wear masks and adhere to social distancing guidelines.
Back in June, CDC director Robert Redfield said that people still weren’t taking the coronavirus as seriously as they should be.
“We’re very concerned that our public health message isn’t resonating,” Redfield said at the time. “We continue to try to figure out how to penetrate the message with different groups.”
Unfortunately, with the coronavirus infection rate still in the 40,000/day range, it doesn’t appear that much has changed since.
