CDC Warns Against Events With More Than 50 People

Organizers advised to postpone events for at least 8 weeks
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 15, 2020 11:03 PM CDT
Updated Mar 16, 2020 2:28 AM CDT
CDC Warns Against Events With More Than 50 People
The Auburn fan section got creative by placing paper plate faces on the seats during the Class 1C boys high school basketball tournament championship game against Ogallala at Pinnacle Bank Arena, Saturday, March 14, 2020, in Lincoln, Neb.   (Chris Machian/Omaha World-Herald via AP)

American life is set to be upended even more by the coronavirus upbreak under a new recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC recommended Sunday that events with more than 50 people—including "conferences, festivals, parades, concerts, sporting events, weddings, and other types of assemblies"—should be either postponed for at least eight weeks or canceled outright, CNN reports. "Large events and mass gatherings can contribute to the spread of COVID-19 in the United States via travelers who attend these events and introduce the virus to new communities," the CDC said.

"This recommendation is made in an attempt to reduce introduction of the virus into new communities and to slow the spread of infection in communities already affected by the virus," the CDC said, adding: "This recommendation is not intended to supersede the advice of local public health officials." The new guidelines do not apply to the daily operations of organizations like schools and businesses, NPR reports. (More coronavirus stories.)

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