CDC: Pandemic is ‘not over,’ Americans must be vigilant as they venture out

The coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. is definitely “not over” and Americans cannot let down their guard, the government’s disease-fighters said Friday, issuing a plea to keep up social distancing, hand-washing and mask-wearing even as President Trump resumes rallies and states reopen shops, gyms and restaurants in the face of ongoing transmission.

“I know that people are eager to return to normal activities and way of life. However, it’s important that we remember this situation is unprecedented and that the pandemic has not ended,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield said on a media call.

The CDC is releasing new guidelines to help Americans navigate the situations they’ll run into as they leave the house after weeks of state-by-state lockdowns. Multiple states are reporting increasing caseloads and hospitalizations, as infections in the U.S. surpass 2 million and the death toll nears 114,000.

“Every activity that involves interaction with others has some degree of risk right now,” said Dr. Jay C. Butler, the COVID-19 response incident-manager at the CDC.

The CDC said anyone dining-out should sit outside, if able, or at tables 6 feet apart from others. If you hit the gym, don’t share items that cannot be cleaned between users and avoid high-fives or other forms of physical contact.

Holding a cookout? Use single-serve food options, remind people to wash their hands and maintain physical distancing. Also, avoid sharing frequently touched items, the agency says.

As a rule of thumb, the CDC said the risk of COVID-19 spread increases the closer you interact with others, the longer the interaction lasts and the greater number of people involved.

Mr. Trump plans to hold his first campaign rally since March in Tulsa on June 19. Unless changes are made, those events tend to flout the CDC’s advice: Supporters crowd should to shoulder on the main floor and surrounding seats, the events can last over two hours and involve thousands of attendees.

The CDC declined to explicitly say whether it endorses the president’s decision to resume the events.

“The guidelines I think speak for themselves,” Dr. Butler said. “They are not regulations, they are not commands but recommendations or even suggestions of how you can have a gathering and keep people as safe as possible.”

Mr. Trump has pointed to the mass gathering of racial-justice protesters in the wake of George Floyd’s death as a justification for resuming his rallies, although his first event will be held at an indoor arena, which is considered a higher-risk environment than outdoors.

The campaign put a disclaimer on its webpage for the Tulsa rally that says by requesting tickets, attendees must assume the risk of COVID-19 spread.

Political rallies, protests and reopening of economies have public health experts worried about a summertime spike in cases, though the CDC is also fretting about the fall and winter when a resurgence in COVID-19 due to colder, drier weather would coincide with flu season.

CDC officials are begging Americans to get their flu shot this year.

“If anything, we must be over-prepared for what we might face later this year,” Dr. Butler said.