Keep safe inside your holiday bubble.
Safely celebrating the holidays this year means taking every precaution to prevent spread of COVID-19.
As community spread of COVID-19 continues, local health officials fear South Jersey will see another increase within two weeks of Thanksgiving.
The best advice offered includes sharing Thanksgiving only with household members.
But if you must go outside your immediate household, the experts at AtlantiCare are sharing information about creating a holiday “bubble” during the pandemic.
A ‘bubble’ is a group of people who commit to safety practices that protect against the spread of the virus and agree to interact only with other bubble members who follow the same precautions.
Creating a bubble requires preparation and commitment that if followed with discipline, could create a way to gather over the holidays with greater peace of mind.
- Identify the members of your bubble and make sure everyone is committed to following the safety precautions, including limiting exposure to anyone beyond the bubble.
- Two weeks prior to your gathering, begin your self-quarantine. Avoid exposure to anyone who’s not part of your bubble.
- Get a COVID test and continue to self-quarantine.
- Even with a negative test result, continue to monitor for COVID symptoms. If you become sick, see a healthcare provider and get tested.
- Anyone with a positive COVID-19 test or signs of illness should bow out of the holiday bubble.
- Agree on the location and the ground rules for your holiday gathering, including face masking and social distancing. Consider who will cook, or whether attendees will bring their own separate food.
- Drive to your gathering if possible, rather than taking public transportation, and follow strict precautions if you must stop at a rest area or service station.
At the holidays, continue to use common sense precautions with members of your bubble and respect the rules for your safe social gathering.
