COVID-19 and Halloween: How to celebrate

Fall is in the air, and with that, many are looking forward to Halloween.

However, with the COVID-19 pandemic still a concern, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is suggesting people consider how they celebrate the holiday.

Is trick-or-treating out this year? Not necessarily.

While traditional trick-or-treating or trunk-or-treating events are at a higher risk, the CDC says there are other options.

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The CDC says participating in one-way trick-or-treating where individually wrapped goodie bags that are lined up for families to grab while practicing social distancing is only a moderate risk.

For those looking for something with a lower risk, the CDC suggests a scavenger hunt-style trick-or-treat search.

While costume parties may be your go-to for the holiday, the health officials say attended crowded costume parties present a higher risk for contracting coronavirus. Socially distanced costume parties present a lower risk, while small, costumed outdoor gatherings with household units present the lowest risk.

The CDC also says haunted houses and hayrack rides present a high risk for contracting the coronavirus.

Other activities that are deemed low risk by the CDC include:

• Carving or decorating pumpkins,
• Decorating your house or apartment,
• A virtual Halloween costume contest,
• A Halloween movie night with the people you live with.

One pediatrician tells KSTP there are ways to trick-or-treat safely and socially distant.

"The message we’re trying to give to kids is not that Halloween is canceled this year, it’s that we have to do Halloween a little bit differently this year to be more safe," Dr. Angela Kade Goepferd, pediatrician at Children’s Minnesota said.

"Putting candy into individual wrapped bags. Lining them up say on a porch or the end of a driveway. You can sit out there see all the kids come in a costumes but kids are grabbing one bag from the end of the driveway and putting it into their pumpkin or Halloween trick or treat bags. I think the message for 2020 is adaptability and flexibility, so we are just doing it differently. It’s not that we’re not doing. It’s we’re just going to do it differently so we can be safe."

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