Traveling Safely This Thanksgiving

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has announced new COVID-19 restrictions that will cap crowds in retail stores and temporarily close museums and casinos. Starting Friday, retail stores must lower capacity to 25% from the current 50%. Grocery stores will be excluded. The new restrictions, announced November 17, 2020, came as Illinois reported 12,601 new cases and 97 deaths. Overall, Illinois has reported nearly 600,000 cases with 10,875 deaths. - Associated Press

With cases of COVID-19 surging across the Midwest, traveling to see loved ones for Thanksgiving could be a big risk. So what is some advice to travel safely if it’s absolutely essential, and how much does testing before we set out make a difference? The 21st spoke to two experts to help offer some guidance.

Guests:

Becky Smith, Epidemiologist and Associate Professor of Pathobiology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Erica Hartmann, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Northwestern

Prepared for web by Zainab Qureshi

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