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LA Health Officials To Super Bowl Fans: Don't Have A Party. Just Don't
This pandemic Super Bowl Sunday, save the drinks for the people you live with. (LAist)
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Thinking about having a few friends over for brewskies and seven-layer dip on Super Bowl Sunday? Health officials are asking you to think again.
COVID-19 infections surged after the World Series and the NBA Finals. Now, L.A. County health officials are worried the same could happen following Sunday's Super Bowl game.
L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said that with close to 5,000 new coronavirus cases a day in the county, the local health care system is not in a good position to handle yet another surge.
"So we're asking everyone, please this year, celebrate the Super Bowl safely," Ferrer said. "Don't turn it into a super-spreader event.
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California lifted its regional stay-at-home order late last month. However, Ferrer said that if L.A. County experiences a significant rise in COVID-19 cases in the coming weeks, closures could be back on the table.
"We're right back to 'do we need to put in place more restrictions' so people in fact have less opportunity to be mingling, because that transmission rate starts going up," Ferrer said.
Restaurants and breweries in L.A. County are prohibited from providing television entertainment — county officials have said this is because safety protocols tend to get too loose around sports events. Shouting and cheering loudly, especially, can help spread the virus.
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