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With COVID-19 infection rates rising rapidly across the country, the NFL announced that starting Saturday, all 32 teams will operate for the remainder of the season under the league’s intensive protocol.
This calls for, among other restrictions, all players and coaches must have a negative result of the previous day’s tests before entering the facility, in addition to the regular daily PCR tests, with all meetings taking place virtually unless they are cannot be held outdoors or indoors with an approved pre-plan, and for face masks worn at all times in the establishment, including on the training ground by all staff. All meals should be taken out to prevent people from congregating in dining rooms. The use of the changing rooms is strongly discouraged on days without a match.
Protocol also prohibits gatherings of teams or players outside the facility, a ban particularly significant with Thanksgiving next week.
“The upcoming holidays, starting with Thanksgiving next week, will introduce new exposure risks that we need to address now,” Commissioner Roger Goodell wrote in a note to teams Wednesday, obtained by NFL Media. “Because we have a very sophisticated daily testing program, we know when the virus enters our facilities, which highlights the importance of contact tracing and other steps to minimize close contact within a facility. . Recent experience has highlighted the importance of minimizing high risks. close contacts; on several occasions we have seen individuals identified on this basis test positive within a short period of time. We have also seen many cases where the effective action of clubs to minimize such close contact has prevented the virus from spreading within the club and has prevented players or coaches from being excluded from training or games. “
Until now, the intensive protocol, put in place on October 1, has been reserved for teams who tested positive or who had been exposed to a team with positive tests. Twenty-eight teams have been in intensive protocol at some point this season and many have voluntarily adjusted some of the restrictions. Since the intensive protocol was put in place and a subsequent mandate calling for a five-day isolation period for “high-risk close contact” of a player or coach who tested positive, the NFL has been in able to eliminate widespread epidemics like the one suffered earlier this season by the Tennessee Titans, which caused a major disruption to the schedule. The NFL has played every game on schedule for the past five weeks.
According to the NFL, clubs that were in the intensive protocol had a more than 50 percent reduction in overall close contact with other people at the facility, compared to teams that were not in the intensive protocols. This mitigates the risk of the virus spreading, even if team members test positive. The NFL also said there had been more than 20 cases of positive tests as teams went through intensive protocols without close, high-risk contacts. This, the league said, indicates that the intensive protocol is effective in getting teams to space out in all parts of the facility – there are limits on how many people can be in the weight room to both, for example – a key element in limiting outbreaks. No club that has been part of the intensive protocol since its introduction in early October has seen the virus spread.
But the NFL is undoubtedly affected by the skyrocketing number of cases in the country. Earlier this week, NFL chief medical officer Dr Allen Sills said genomic testing on each positive case indicated the virus had not spread among teams since the establishment of the high risk and intensive close contact protocols. . On the contrary, the increase in the number of positive cases in teams over the past few weeks has come from a community spread outside the team – players and coaches catch the virus from someone they interact with outside. of the team, which reflects the difficulties of playing. bubble-free when the country fails to contain the virus. Goodell’s note also said it is likely that further protocol changes will likely be needed as the season continues.
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