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Ask Amy: Vaccinated family conducts risk assessment

Amy Dickinson, Tribune Content Agency on

There is no need to send these family members articles showing how safe the vaccine is.

Vaccinated people seem to respond to the idea of spending time with unvaccinated people along a wide spectrum.

For instance, I understand that the vaccine protects me from the more severe symptoms of the disease caused by the COVID virus – that way, even if I contract the virus, I am unlikely to land in the hospital or suffer long-term effects. I am also far less likely to spread the virus to others. That’s why I chose vaccination.

The current CDC guidelines state: “Indoor and outdoor activities pose minimal risk to fully-vaccinated people.”

Other people who are vaccinated gauge their risk differently than I do, and this has become very much a personal issue, which is why it is important for all of us to respect the health and safety concerns of others – wearing masks and social distancing when on airplanes or around medically vulnerable people, and respecting the preferences and concerns of parents with unvaccinated children.

Is there some risk in being around unvaccinated people? Yes. But they pose a much greater risk of spreading serious illness to each other than to you.

 

Does this pose a “danger” to your family? It depends on how you define “danger.”

If you are around unvaccinated people indoors who refuse to follow a mask mandate for unvaccinated people, or if you are simply unsure of their vaccination status, you could choose to wear a mask and maintain your own distance.

Or you could stay home.

Dear Amy: My husband and I were invited to a July 2020 wedding before the pandemic began.

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