Summer Plans in a Pandemic — What Is and Isn’t Safe?

With many of us approaching month two (or more) of quarantine, the itch to go outdoors is starting to feel near-overwhelming. But infectious-disease and public-health experts warn that there's currently no such thing as a zero-risk outing. Even seemingly innocuous activities like sharing a vacation home with another family carries some degree of risk.

What determines risk?

Dr. William Miller, an epidemiologist at Ohio State University, says transmission risk is determined by three factors:

1. Time: Risk increases as the amount of time you spend with others goes up
2. Space: Risk increases as the space between you and others decreases
3. People: Risk increases as the number of people with whom you interact goes up

How can risk be minimized?

Dr. Emily Landon, a hospital epidemiologist and infectious diseases specialist at University of Chicago Medicine, advises:

• Outdoor activities are safer than indoor activities
• Masks should be worn
• Bigger spaces are better

Risk levels of summer activities

Low risk

• A pool or beach day, assuming maintenance of social distancing
• Sharing a vacation house with another family, as long as both families have been quarantining and limiting exposure to others
• Camping, as long as fellow campers have been social distancing and following COVID-19 guidelines
• Golf, tennis, and other non-contact outdoor sports

Low to medium risk

• Staying at a hotel (time in common areas - such as the lobby, gym, restaurant, and elevator - should be limited)
• A BYOB background gathering with one other household (risk level is dependent on the other household's adherence to social distancing and COVID-19 precautions)

Medium to high risk

• Eating indoors at a restaurant
• An outdoor celebration of more than 10 guests (risk goes up as the number of guests increases)
• Getting a haircut

High risk

• Attending religious services
• Going to a nightclub

Share your summer plans

Now that you know the risk levels of various summertime activities, what — if any — activities do you plan to engage in?

—Lorelei Yang

(Image Credit: iStockphoto.com / Feverpitched)