As businesses reopen, public-health experts provide guidance on venturing out safely
Public-health experts generally agree that to reopen society safely, communities need widespread testing so officials can be confident that the number of coronavirus cases in the population is low and people who are positive can be quarantined.
Communities also need a system to trace people who have come into contact with positive cases so they too can be isolated, doctors say. “Otherwise you simply let everybody out for a few days and two weeks later have a surge in cases and have to start all over again,” says Gregory Poland, director of the Mayo Clinic’s Vaccine Research Group in Rochester, Minn.
The U.S. so far largely lacks widespread testing and tracing, he says. “Most communities do not have that capacity.”
So the safest move for most people is still to stay home as much as possible. But if you do go out, there are ways to reduce the risks. Here’s what the experts say:
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