How to Safely Celebrate this Year’s Passover and Easter: Dr. Wen’s Advice |

The Passover festival begins this Saturday and Easter is about to begin. As more people are vaccinated, people are wondering what activities are safe. Is it okay for fully vaccinated people to get together at Cedar or Easter brunch? How about a family gathering when some are vaccinated and some are not yet vaccinated?

Before we started cooking brisket and ham for our extended family, we asked CNN Medical Analyst Dr. Linawen what the family should consider.

Wen is an emergency physician at the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University, a visiting professor of health policy and management, and the author of the next book, Lifeline: A Doctor’s Journey in the Battle for Public Health. Here is her advice.

CNN: Let’s start with the simplest scenario. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, fully vaccinated people can gather together indoors.??

Dr. Liana Wen: exactly. Complete vaccination means at least two weeks after the second dose of one of the two vaccines, Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, or two weeks after the first dose of Johnson & Johnson vaccine. According to the CDC, if everyone who wants to celebrate together is completely vaccinated, they can safely see each other, including indoors, without a mask and share their meals together.

CNN: Is there a limit to the number of people who can safely participate in Cedar or Easter brunch?

Wen: No, but it’s really important that everyone there is completely vaccinated. The higher the number, the more likely it is that not all people have been vaccinated, or less than two weeks after vaccination. Make sure everyone is vaccinated before gathering together. If you’re not sure, or if you’re worried that someone isn’t coming, we recommend declining the invitation.

CNN: What if the person who came is not vaccinated because they are not vaccinated? For example, what about children?

Wen: The CDC states that if fully vaccinated people meet with households that have unvaccinated people, they should only look at one household at a time. That is, suppose your grandparents are vaccinated and you have two sets of children, each with an unvaccinated grandchild. They can be seen one at a time on two separate visits, but should not be seen together as the risks lie with unvaccinated individuals who may pose risks to each other.

In this example, you have two options. One is that grandparents were able to see each household individually and celebrate the holidays twice. In that case, this should be relatively low risk unless unvaccinated people are at high risk of serious consequences of Covid-19. And it can be done in close proximity, indoors, without a mask, by breaking bread and sharing meals together.

Another option is for everyone to get together outdoors and members of different households at least 6 feet apart. Even in this scenario, it is best to pay close attention. We do not recommend sharing food, drinks or utensils. It’s okay to look for Afikomen or Easter eggs in the middle of a cedar. All you have to do later is eat the individually wrapped prizes and treats.

CNN: Can unvaccinated children play together?

Wen: Outdoors, yes. Ideally, you should wear a mask if you cannot maintain a distance of 6 feet. Depending on your age, there are plenty of fun outdoor activities. Kick the ball, play in the jungle gym, do a scavenger hunt, ride a bike and more.

CNN: Is the test useful? Should people take a test before they get together?

Wen: If everyone in the group is fully vaccinated, there is no need to test. No testing is needed if people are spending time outdoors away.

Let’s say a family with unvaccinated people wants to get together indoors. Theoretically, you can do all the quarantine (meaning to reduce the risk as much as possible), test, and if negative, see each other indoors for 7 days before collection. At this point, the holidays are so close that this quarantine and testing strategy is probably not practical. I stick to the above advice.

CNN: Should I pay more attention to the variant?

Wen: There are variants of concern that are widespread in many parts of the United States. The main subspecies that is rapidly spreading nationwide is B.1.1.7. This is a variant from the United Kingdom that is more infectious and potentially deadly than the original Covid-19 strain. Still, the vaccine we have seems to be effective in preventing it. It also spreads like other coronavirus strains, so the same public health measures, such as masking, distance, and avoidance of indoor gatherings, are also effective protections against this variant.

However, due to these circular variants, special attention should be paid. Unvaccinated people should not gather together indoors.

We are not far from the end of the pandemic. About 2 to 3 million people are vaccinated daily in the United States. Celebrate your holidays safely.