I really don’t like writing these updates. It feels like I’m constantly “polishing the turd” that is COVID-19. But in the name of continuing to try to do the right thing and keep everyone informed, here we go again!
The US is the Global Leader!?
I’m not even going to look at the WHO website. I already know the US is the worst at managing COVID-19. How is the country with some of the best medicine and technology also experiencing the highest death and infection rates? There are a number of answers here that range from political to conspiratorial to emotional. We don’t need to get into them here, but I bring it up because they generally put the blame somewhere else. If the US is the worst, it means we as US citizens have to share the blame.
In the chart below, I’ve selected six states to compare based on their positivity rates. These are new cases per thousand of population, so the chart allows you to see how Colorado is doing relative to other states. The good news is that we are doing reasonably well relative to the states I’ve chosen. The bad news is that our positivity rate has tripled over the past three weeks – it’s no surprise that Colorado and Denver are cracking down. Thankfully, nobody at Simplifya has contributed to these numbers!
But take a look at Wisconsin and Missouri. Wisconsin in particular, was one of the better states for several months, is now one of the worst. You’ll see similar trends for Florida, Mississippi, Tennessee – the southeast, basically. This chart is fun to play with, by the way. Check it out for yourself!
Holiday Policy for Simplifya Employees
We are approaching holiday season, the time of year when travel and larger family gatherings would be the norm. Except this isn’t a normal year. We are not going to tell you how to participate in your family traditions. On the contrary, we encourage you to spend time with family and friends – the pandemic actually helps us appreciate this time even more than usual. And you’ve all been living with the pandemic long enough to know how to spend that time safely.
But here’s how we can be accountable to each other. If you travel or participate in larger family gatherings, please plan to self-quarantine for seven days following your return or the gathering. This allows time for anybody in your gathering to show symptoms or, in the worst case, report a positive test result. In full disclosure, this is not a CDC guideline. It’s a proactive safety measure that reduces potential spread to other employees and is a minor imposition on our current business practice.
- On the eighth day, you may return to the office provided you are feeling well and nobody in your gathering is showing symptoms or has tested positive. I know many of you have already been following this rule of thumb and some of you have opted to get tested as an additional precaution – thank you!
- If you have reason to believe you’ve been exposed to someone with COVID-19, you must quarantine for 14 days. This is a CDC guideline that applies when someone in your gathering is showing symptoms or has tested positive. Frankly, it could just be that you’re aware of having been put in a risky situation – gatherings of more than 10 people, prolonged periods of time in a confined space, etc.
For Election Volunteers
Some of you are planning to do volunteer work on Election Day. The level of risk varies widely based on the nature of the volunteer work, so you’re going to have to make your own judgment call about whether to self-quarantine. Generally, if your work is in a poll center you should probably self-quarantine for at least seven days; if your work is monitoring the poll center from the outside you probably don’t need to self-quarantine. In both cases, much depends on your degree of interaction with others. Please be safe and thank you for volunteering.