General Advice Regarding Covid-19

A note from Dr. Mark Peluso, Chief Health Officer and College Physician

While recent data and news reports indicate that COVID-19 indicators are increasing nationally, CDC guidance for individual and community actions around COVID-19 are tied to hospital admission levels, which are currently low for more than 98% of the country.

Despite the presence of newer COVID variants (XBB strains and EG.5), the CDC and Vermont Department of Health note that Vermont COVID-19 hospitalization levels remain LOW and the volume of people going to emergency departments due to COVID-like symptoms is LOWER than the same time of year in years 2020-2022. 

Current reports note that the newer variants do not appear to cause more severe illness than previous Omicron strains.

Writer’s Conference attendees should consider the following general advice regarding COVID-19: 

• Do not attend if you are sick and follow CDC recommendations for isolation if you have suspected or confirmed COVID-19.
• Follow CDC recommendations for what to do if you are exposed to someone with COVID-19.
• If you are at high risk of getting very sick, talk with your personal healthcare provider about additional prevention actions. 
• If you are immunocompromised, learn more about how to protect yourself.
• Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines.
• People may choose to mask at any time. People with symptoms or exposure to someone with COVID-19 should wear a high-quality mask or respirator when indoors in public.