CECC issues Guidelines for Large-Scale Public Gatherings to prevent widespread community transmissions


PublishTime:2020-03-05
On March 5, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) announced that it has issued Guidelines for Large-Scale Public Gatherings in the Wake of the COVID-19 Outbreak (see attachment) to give guidance for organizing public gatherings. The CECC pointed out that public gatherings tend to attract considerable crowds, with people standing or sitting in close proximity to one another for extended periods of time, causing increased risk of transmission. The discovery of suspected individual cases or cluster infections complicates efforts to prevent and control the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The CECC recommends that organizers of large-scale public gatherings conduct risk assessments based on the following six indicators: 1. ability to gain information on participants beforehand; 2. air ventilation and replacement; 3. distance between participants; 4. whether participants are in a fixed position; 5. event duration; 6. hand hygiene and surgical masks. If an assessment of the nature of the gathering finds a high degree of risk, the CECC recommends that the gathering be postponed or cancelled, or held in a different manner.