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Good afternoon, colleagues:
As we continue with this rollercoaster of a year, we at AACC are well aware that the Delta variant is a cause for concern for many who are planning to attend this year’s Annual Scientific Meeting. Those who live in households with young children who cannot yet be vaccinated, or with people who are immune-compromised and face additional danger from the virus, are particularly concerned about keeping their activities as low-risk as possible.
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We completely understand. And, of course, nothing is more important to AACC than the health and safety of our meeting attendees and exhibitors.
To this end, AACC is now requiring all meeting participants to be vaccinated, and for all meeting participants to have received a negative PCR or antigen COVID-19 test within 72 hours of arriving at the convention center.
Our mask requirements remain – namely that all persons within the AACC meeting campus must wear a face mask covering their nose and mouth at all times they are indoors.
As potential meeting attendees continue to consider their options, I thought it might be useful to share the most recent guidance from the CDC for fully vaccinated people (updated August 19):
Per the CDC, if you’ve been fully vaccinated:
- You can resume activities that you did prior to the pandemic.
- To reduce the risk of being infected with the Delta variant and possibly spreading it to others, wear a mask indoors in public if you are in an area of substantial or high transmission.
- You might choose to wear a mask regardless of the level of transmission if you have a weakened immune system or if, because of your age or an underlying medical condition, you are at increased risk for severe disease, or if a member of your household has a weakened immune system, is at increased risk for severe disease, or is unvaccinated.
- If you travel in the United States, you do not need to get tested before or after travel or self-quarantine after travel.
- If you’ve had close contact with someone who has COVID-19, you should get tested 3-5 days after your exposure, even if you don’t have symptoms. You should also wear a mask indoors in public for 14 days following exposure or until your test result is negative. You should isolate for 10 days if your test result is positive.
In the days to come, more details will be shared on how to disclose vaccination and negative test status at the meeting.
All the best,
Stephen R. Master, MD, PhD
AACC President |
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