University of Virginia issued the following announcement on Nov. 18
At this time last year, demand for holiday travel saw a steep decline, with train ticket sales down by 20% and the Transportation Security Administration reporting airport traffic as less than half of the numbers seen in 2019.
As the holiday season comes back on the horizon this year, it is clear that progress has been made. In late November of 2020, COVID vaccine shipments to the states were still a few weeks out. Fast-forward to today, and 445 million vaccines have been administered in the U.S. Almost 60% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated, and an additional 31.5 million have received a booster.
With Thanksgiving now a week away and the rest of the holiday season to follow closely behind, UVA Today checked in with a UVA infectious diseases expert to understand what is expected heading into the gathering season. Dr. William Petri, vice chair for research in the UVA Department of Medicine and a chaired professor of infectious disease and international health, offered insights, comparisons and recommendations on how to proceed.
Q. Do health experts expect COVID cases to surge again this holiday season?
A. Yes, but I have invited my adult children, who are all vaccinated, to travel home to see us! This is the opposite advice that I gave them last year at this time – which was the right decision then, as holiday travel last year resulted in the highest number of COVID-19 infections of the entire pandemic, peaking at 300,000 new cases in one day on Jan. 8.
Original source can be found here.
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