CDC chief says George Floyd protests could be coronavirus 'seeding events', urges demonstrators to get tested
With the protests over the death of George Floyd refusing to die down in the US, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has warned the demonstrators against the continuing coronavirus pandemic and advised them to get tested for the disease. America remains the worst affected nation in terms of coronavirus cases with nearly two million people testing positive. Over 109,000 people have died from the virus, much more than the next-worst UK with more than 40,000 dead, as per the John Hopkins tracker.
CDC chief Robert Redfield, who appeared at a hearing for the House Committee on Appropriations, came up with the suggestion for the protesters. “I do think there is a potential, unfortunately, for this to be a seeding event,” the 68-year-old Redfield, a member of President Donald Trump’s coronavirus task force which has scaled down its operations dramatically once the states have started reopening, told Florida Representative Lois Frankel. Redfield advised the protesters to inform their near ones that they are planning to get tested for Covid-19 within three to seven days after going out among people. The veteran also said during talks with Wisconsin Representative Mark Pocan that the tear gas and pepper spray that the law-keepers used to disperse the protesters could cause coughing and facilitate the virus’ spread all the more.
“Definitely, coughing can spread respiratory viruses, including Covid-19,” Redfield said. When Pocan asked Redfield whether the federal agency had asked the law-enforcement agencies against using tear gas at the time of the pandemic, the latter said he would pass on the comment at the next meeting of the task force. He strongly emphasized that the protesters wear masks.
Shouting and running during protests increases Covid-19 risk
Daily Mail cited Dr William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine and infectious diseases at Tennessee’s Vanderbilt University Medical Center, who said there are many reasons why one could get infected by the coronavirus at a protest site. Besides the lack of precautionary measures like social distancing and avoiding masks, the fact that people shout and run a lot also makes them vulnerable to the virus. “There is a lot of shouting and running around, which is exertional, which will make people breathe more deeply and exhale more,” he was quoted as saying. He said an increased exhalation means a rise in the potentially infected droplets in the air and a greater possibility of a non-infected person breathing them in and falling sick. Also, more colored people, who have been disproportionately affected by the virus, are attending the protests and that makes it potentially more dangerous.
Schaffner advised the protesters to maintain social distancing, wear masks, and use hand sanitizer while demonstrating. He also asked them to retreat in the evening. “Because it would appear that all the rambunctiousness occurs once it gets dark and obviously with all the running around and congregating then, that's when the risk increases,” the expert said. The narratives of health security and social movements like anti-racism have overlapped in the US at this time as more than 1,000 health professionals penned an open letter seeking that protests around the US should not be shut down because of the coronavirus health concerns.
“We created the letter in response to emerging narratives that seemed to malign demonstrations as risky for the public health because of Covid-19,” the letter read. “Instead, we wanted to present a narrative that prioritizes opposition to racism as vital to the public health, including the epidemic response. We believe that the way forward is not to suppress protests in the name of public health but to respond to protesters demands in the name of public health, thereby addressing multiple public health crises.” The letter then went on to set guidelines on how both the protesters and law-keepers could maintain safety even while being out in the public.