Talking about how the virus spreads

A lot of the discussion around spreading coronavirus has been person-to-person transmission, and that makes a lot of sense. But some experts are warning there needs to be more open discussion about the use of the word “airborne” when it comes to the virus. Not only can people pass the virus directly to one another in the little droplets that we all spray to one degree or another when we talk, laugh or sing; but those little droplets also go up into the air where, Dr. Donald Milton says, they can float around for a while. Milton, a professor of environmental health at the University of Maryland who studies how viruses are transmitted, helped lead a group of 239 scientists who wrote an open letter to appeal for better recognition of the potential airborne transmission of coronavirus. It's not that we haven’t known this, but more about the way words are used.  "The current guidance from numerous international and national bodies focuses on hand washing, maintaining social distancing, and droplet precautions," Milton and colleagues wrote in the letter, published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases. Milton and the others warn that it’s important to recognize airborne transmission outside of aerosol-generating procedures performed in health care settings. They have concerns people may forget this as reopenings put them in situations that may expose them to this form of transmission – such as a crowded bar where people are shouting or singing, if air conditioning is recirculating without any outside air, or with windows shut and the heat on. This is something worth discussing. It's why when we talk about harm reduction, you keep in mind where you are and how long. That can affect your risk of getting the virus, along with taking steps including washing hands, physical distancing and wearing masks.