It looks like concern over COVID-19 is impacting holiday travel. The forecast from Triple-A says the number of Americans driving over Thanksgiving will drop by ten percent compared to last year. Healthcare providers also continue warning those who hit the road for the holiday to exercise caution. Dr. Thomas Weide practices at University Medical Center in Tuscaloosa. He says wearing a mask, social distancing, and eating outdoors are good ways to avoid giving the coronavirus to your family.
“And, I’d say if you wearing your mask and outdoors, you’d probably have a little more latitude on that," said Weide.
"No definitive guidelines on this, but it would give you a little latitude just because a lot more air exposure, so that dilutes the virus," he said.
Weide also offered practical tips for serving dinner on Thanksgiving. One idea is to have one person, wearing a mask, in the kitchen as the meal is prepared. That individual would then serve up each plate. Weide says this avoid the possible hazard of having a buffet.
“The other thing you may want to watch out for is, if you’ve having a potluck type of dinner--for everybody bring just their own for their own family unit rather than sharing all that," said Weide.
"Again, just a way of decreasing transmission,” he stated.
State Health officials say Alabama’s COVID-19 mortality rate is currently fifteen times higher than for conventional flu.
