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People under 40 should assume they became infected with COVID over holiday, White House report says

If you are under 40, you should assume you became infected with coronavirus sometime over Thanksgiving if you gathered outside your household, according to White House Coronavirus Task Force briefings obtained by ABC News.

Officials with the CDC urged Americans to avoid traveling for the Thanksgiving holiday as cases of COVID-19 spiked nationwide. They also encouraged families to limit the number of guests, practice social distancing or consider an outside gathering.

In the report obtained by ABC News, health officials said you most likely will not have symptoms but you still need to get tested and isolate away from others.

If you are over the age of 65 or have significant medical conditions and you gathered for Thanksgiving, the task force said you are at a significant risk for serious COVID infection. If you develop any symptoms, you should be tested immediately. In addition, health officials advised anyone over 65 to not enter public spaces where someone could be unmasked -- they should have medications and groceries delivered.

According to ABC News, the briefing described the COVID risk to all Americans as at a “historic high.”

“We are in a very dangerous place due to the current, extremely high COVID baseline and limited hospital capacity. A further post-Thanksgiving surge will compromise COVID patient care, as well as medical care overall,” the briefing read.”

The task force encouraged public health officials to alert state residents directly if state and local policies did not reflect the severity current COVID-19 situation.

Key Takeaways for North Carolina:

  • North Carolina is in the “Red Zone” for cases, indicating 101 or more new cases per 100,000 population with the 40th highest rate in the country
  • North Carolina is the in the “Yellow Zone” for test positivity, showing a rate between 5.0% and 7.9% and the 39th highest rate in the country
  • The state has seen stability in new cases and a decrease in test positivity -- 77 counties saw an increase in cases rates and 34 counties saw an increase in test positivity
  • Mecklenburg, Wake and Guilford counties have had the highest number of new cases over the last three weeks
  • 86 percent of all counties in North Carolina have moderate or high levels of community transmission