This makes it a particularly inopportune moment to celebrate Father's Day this Sunday. Instead of choosing between the usual gifts of socks or ties, this year it's time to reconsider the risks of gathering in person.
Six short weeks ago, Mother's Day presented a similar conundrum, and many families took to celebrating on various video chat platforms. The decision may have been easier then, when it was clear the pandemic was still at large. Despite the socially distanced celebration -- and any difficulty we might have had hearing each other on Zoom -- many of us hoped that things would be looking up soon. Surely, all of those weeks of sheltering and cleaning and fretting were going to pay off.
The US' approach to reopening -- which has been unscientific and uncoordinated -- has failed miserably. Rather than cautiously peeling back the various Covid-19 containment safeguards, most states have supported an "everybody-back-in-the-pool" return, as if we were all teens partying during Spring Break.
This week, 21 states are seeing upticks in newly reported cases, with sharp increases in Arizona, Oklahoma, California, Arkansas, South Carolina, Texas and elsewhere.
Worst of all, it is not just case counts that are skyrocketing -- in many states, the rate of positive tests is also on the rise. This means that many spikes are not due to more testing, but rather a true increase in community transmission. It's bad enough in Arizona, where 76% of intensive care unit beds are occupied, that the state health director told hospitals to "fully activate" emergency plans.
Given the increase in Covid-19 cases, is it a good idea to get the family together on Father's Day?
Sorry, dads. Social distancing is still advised. Check your WiFi connection early and often to make certain you are ready for Sunday. Because even though it's been six months since the outbreak first emerged, the US is stuck in the mud. Though the hot spots have changed, the number of daily new cases in the US remains high. In many ways, we're worse off now than we were several months ago -- people are starting to face coronavirus fatigue after several weeks of lockdown, while many politicians seem to care more about kickstarting the economy than stopping the spread of Covid-19.
Keep in mind that there are still factors contributing to the transmission of Covid-19 that we simply do not understand. Researchers in Japan recently examined epidemiologic information in over 3,000 Covid-19 cases and identified dozens of clusters of related cases that accounted for 61% of all cases. These clusters occurred in familiar places such as hospitals, bars or the workplace.
But 39% of the cases were not connected to a discernible cluster. In other words, many of these cases were likely one-offs that could not be traced, along with other cases, to a common source like a coughing office mate or an infected patient. Rather, these cases were likely transmitted here and there, perhaps among members of the same household. Researchers in China found that household transmission rates clocked in at about 16%.
We should all approach Father's Day with caution -- not just those who live in states with sharp upticks in Covid-19 cases. Because the lesson we should have learned by now is this: the coronavirus does not respect borders. It is possible and even likely that a week from now, more states will slip onto the hot spot list and cause the same frenzy we are seeing in Arizona today.
Besides, let's be honest -- Father's Day is no Mother's Day. The spending on the two holidays reflects this: in 2019, Americans spent a total of $25 billion on Mother's Day gifts, compared to just $16 billion for dear old dad, according to the National Retail Federation.
As a dad myself, this junior varsity status is fine by me. This year in particular, I want nothing to do with celebrating a holiday in the middle of a poorly managed pandemic.
This Father's Day, celebrate dads by staying home and staying safe. And don't forget to speak up on the video chat.
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June 19, 2020 at 07:34PM
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This Father's Day, stay safe and stick to Zoom celebrations - CNN
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