Summer break is fast approaching and a lot of families have planned their vacation for months. However, due to the spread of the coronavirus, the CDC or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned the public to limit contact and travel as much as possible.
Since the epidemic started late January 2020, 60 countries have been infected and the death toll is around 2,924 and counting. Numerous countries have called for a travel ban, mainly China and South Korea, two countries that have the most number of coronavirus patients.
Because of this travel ban, a lot of families are now asking if they should just cancel their vacation for their safety. And experts agree.
Rethinking your family vacation
Coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, is spreading at an alarming rate. Right now, almost half of the Asian countries have known cases of the coronavirus, Italy is the first country in Europe that has the most case of the virus and even the Latin American and Middle Eastern countries are infected.
Traveling within America
Although traveling abroad is temporarily discouraged, a professor of pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Dr. Aaron M. Milstone, M.D. said that going to amusement parks and other tourist spots in America is still safe and families can be comfortable in spending their vacation there for the meantime because, in the end, the situation can change fast.
There are two confirmed cases of coronavirus patients being admitted to a hospital in California, while the third confirmed case is in Oregon, but that does not change the recommendation of the experts. They still deemed it safe for Americans to travel across the state.
Concerns about air travel
If you will be traveling throughout different states with your family via airplane, an infectious diseases specialist and professor of pediatrics and epidemiology at Stanford Medicine, Dr. Yvonne Maldonado, M.D. said that it is completely safe and that you have nothing to worry about.
The virus is not airborne, unlike measles or chickenpox, so it does not linger in the air for too long. She also said that there is a higher chance of you getting contaminated with the virus through human interaction and touching contaminated surfaces.
Your best defenses are wiping bathroom handles, tables, your seats and other parts of the plane that you may touch and that are not sanitized by the flight crew regularly and washing your hands as often as needed. Although alcohol wipes are not proven to prevent being contaminated by the virus, it can still help minimize your exposure to it.
Is it safe for pregnant women to travel at this time?
An assistant professor of epidemiology and immunology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Dr. Michael Mina, M.D., Ph.D. said that although the experts still recommend people to travel within America, they still recommend pregnant women and those with compromised immune systems to rethink their travel plans and best to just spend their vacation in their own state.
Take precautionary measures
If you and your family do decide to push through with your travel plans, experts advise that you must wash your hands properly with soap as often as possible. Avoid touching your nose, mouth, and eyes and use alcohol gels and wipes if you need to clean a surface that you need to touch.
If you need to cough or sneeze, do it into your elbow instead of your hands. Face masks do not do much in protecting you from the virus, and it just gives a false sense of security according to experts. What you should do instead is to avoid people who are visibly sick and minimize human contact as much as possible.
