CA officials announce new guidelines for holiday gatherings amid COVID-19 surge

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On Friday, California officials announced new guidelines for holiday gatherings, including Thanksgiving, fearing the COVID-19 spike seen in the state is about to get much worse.

Dr. Mark Ghaly, the state’s secretary of Health and Human Services, said coronavirus cases went up 47% in California during the first week of November.

He said the surge he’s been afraid of is here.

“When I’m worried, I’ll tell you so you can worry with me, and we’re there,” Dr. Ghaly noted.

He said he worries even more that the spread will accelerate as Californians gather for Thanksgiving and holiday get-togethers, so he’s recommending that they don’t.

“The safest gatherings remain those that happen at home with members of your own household,” Dr. Ghaly said. “We encourage Californians to gather virtually whenever possible, and when you are gathering with others, to have it outdoors as much as possible because we know that significantly reduces the risk.”

Dr. Ghaly said that if Golden State residents must have others over, they should please limit it to people from no more than two other households besides their own and keep it to roughly 90 minutes. He also asked Californians to wear masks, except when eating or drinking, and practice social distancing from those outside their household.

Despite the worsening surge, Dr. Ghaly said he is not contemplating a new statewide stay at home order, preferring to rely for now on the color-coded, four-tier reopening system.

More counties are likely to move back to the most restrictive tier on Tuesday.

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