COVID-19 is a new disease that wasn’t previously seen in humans. Because of this, new science emerges daily. In this changing landscape of rapid research and discovery it’s important to identify a few trusted sources of information to rely upon.

The modern world provides a lot of information, but not all information is good or accurate. A lot of what we do at Hood Medicine is aimed at providing clear, accurate, research-based information. When considering information about the pandemic you should:

1. Consider the source and their credentials. Ask yourself if they are qualified to share information that can potentially save or harm the lives of others.
2. Double, triple, and quadruple check with other independent sources. If the information you hear is accurate, it will be supported by people who are qualified through education, training, and experience to make potentially life-impacting statements.

Here is a short list of credible sources for accurate information about the pandemic, keep in mind that in scenarios where multiple sources disagree – it’s generally best to follow the strictest guidelines when it comes to keeping yourself and your loved ones safe:

World Health Organization (WHO)

The World Health Organization  is widely considered to be the international standard in global health monitoring, advocacy, and policy. Many of the world’s countries, businesses, and non-government organizations rely upon the WHO for valuable public health information. In addition to getting general guidelines from the WHO, they are also a valuable benchmark for determining how our local and federal governments are performing in the midst of this pandemic.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

While the CDC is not an independent global organization, it is the primary public health entity for the United States, and thus provides reliable information about the US in the midst of the pandemic. 

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

The NIH is the United States’ medical research agency, and source of much of the research that becomes US policies, practices, and guidelines.

State Health Departments

Your state health department is a credible source for accurate, local information about the pandemic in your state. Find the health department for your state or territory here.

It’s important to know that scientists are still learning more about the spread of COVID-19. Here’s what we we know so far:

Person-to-person

COVID-19 can easily spread from one person to another. This means that a COVID-19 positive person can spread the virus to others – even if they don’t have any symptoms of illness.

Person-to-person spread can occurs when:

• A person comes into contact with the respiratory droplets that are released in the air when a COVID-19 positive person breathes, speaks, sings, sneezes, or coughs. These respiratory droplets can be large enough to see, or too small to detect. Respiratory droplets are naturally created whenever we breath, speak, sing, sneeze or cough. These droplets can spread infection when they are inhaled, eaten, or deposited in the eyes, nose or mouth.
• Virus particles are small enough to linger in the air for prolonged periods of time, leading to airborne transmission when the particles are inhaled by others.

Contaminated surfaces

Surfaces can become contaminated with respiratory droplets from COVID-19 positive people. Contact with these surface can lead to infection by touching your mouth, nose, or eyes after contact with the contaminated surface

Person-to-animal / Animal-to-person

Researchers currently find the risk of transmission between humans and animals to be low; however there are document cases of cross-species spread, including domesticated cats and dogs.

COVID-19 can affect different people in different ways. Some people are asymptomatic and display no symptoms of illness, despite having the virus and being able to spread it to others. Some people experience mild discomfort, and others have varying degrees of more serious illness up to and including permanent debilitation or death. So far, roughly 1% of COVID-19 positive people across the world will die; others still may experience lasting damage to major organ systems including the brain, heart, kidneys, and lungs.

The following activities should be avoided as much as possible:

• Sharing food or drinks with anyone outside of intimate partners 
• Hugging, kissing, or shaking hands with anyone outside of your immediate household
• Sharing cosmetics or personal grooming devices (razors, makeup brushes, etc.) with others
• Interacting with pets outside of your personal pets, or allowing your pets to interact with anyone outside of your immediate household

The following places should be avoided as much as possible. In situations where you must visit these places, you should wear a properly fitting masks for your entire stay:

• Restaurants – choose pickup or delivery instead
• Indoor gyms – choose outdoor venues or home workouts instead
• Ride shares or public transportation – wear a mask, avoid unnecessarily touching surfaces, and thoroughly wash your hands after each ride
• Saunas

Vaccine distribution varies state-by-state, please refer to your state’s information site (where available) to find information and register for the vaccine:

• Alabama
• Alaska
• American Samoa
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• California
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• District of Columbia
• Florida
• Georgia
• Guam
• Hawaii
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Maine
• Maryland
• Marshall Islands
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Micronesia
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• Nebraska
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New Mexico
• New York
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Northern Mariana Islands
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Palau
• Pennsylvania
• Puerto Rico
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• U.S. Virgin Islands
• Vermont
• Virginia
• Washington
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin
• Wyoming