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Yes, SF Allows You to See Friends: Updated Health Guidelines

Seeing friends can be important for your mental health. Here’s how SF wants you to minimize the risk
By - posted 6/10/2020 No Comment

Thanks to SF Gate for letting us know that San Francisco has updated their guidelines on how to safely expand social circles. I.e. how to stop going insane inside your own house and how to see friends and family in the safest way possible.

San Francisco issued updated guidance on Saturday on safer social interactions during the pandemic. “seeing friends can be important for your mental health”

The best way to not get yourself or others sick is to stay home. You should try to talk to your friends online or over the phone. But seeing friends can be important for your mental health. If you do meet with others, you can reduce your risk of getting or spreading COVID-19.

Think about the risk of meeting in person

Every time you meet with others, you increase your risk of getting COVID-19 and passing it on to your household. Consider how much the social event means to you.

Consider the risk to yourself, the people you live with, and the people you will see. Older adults and people with pre-existing health conditions are most in danger if they get COVID-19. The safest way to see them is to talk on the phone or online.

Consider the number of COVID-19 positive cases in your area. Is it increasing, staying flat, or decreasing in your community? See cases in San Francisco.

If you feel sick, stay home and do not see people! You can get tested for COVID-19 at various locations in SF.

Outdoor Activities are Safest

If you’re outside, you should still stay 6 feet apart and wear face coverings if you’re around people you don’t live with.

Meeting people indoors is much riskier. If you meet people indoors, you must always wear a face covering. Make sure you’re in a room with open windows or good ventilation. Try not to touch surfaces inside. Have cleaning supplies ready, so surfaces can be wiped down often. Try to avoid using other people’s bathrooms, if possible.

Plan activities to minimize contact

Hang out with as few people as possible. Try to only spend time with the same people. Remember who you meet. If someone in your group feels sick later, the City can help them get tested.

Try not to share food, drinks, or utensils. Each person should have their own, if possible.

Avoid sharing toys, bats, balls, or objects passed back and forth. Bring disinfecting wipes to sanitize anything that might be shared.

Avoid singing, chanting, or shouting.

After your meeting

See if you develop new symptoms

Get tested for COVID-19 if:

  • You have a fever over 100.4° Fahrenheit or 38.0° Celsius
  • You’re shivering a lot
  • You have a cough
  • It’s hard to breathe
  • You feel tired or sore
  • You can’t smell or taste anything
  • Your throat hurts
  • Your head hurts
  • You have a runny or stuffy nose
  • You have diarrhea, feel sick to your stomach, or are throwing up

If you test positive for COVID-19, you must follow isolation instructions.
If you test negative but still feel sick, stay home until it’s been 10 days since you felt sick.
If someone you met tests positive for COVID-19

You should quarantine for 14 days if you spent more than 10 minutes within 6 feet of that person while they were not masked.

Read the Official Guidance.