US funerals move to live-streaming.
As the coronavirus crisis escalates the US’s health protection agency has urged mourners to change drastically the way they say goodbye to loved ones - by live-streaming their funerals.
In a webinar with the National Funeral Directors Association and funeral homes across the US, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said funerals should be limited to a small number of mourners physically present, and streamed online for everyone else.
This is not because of a risk of being infected from a deceased person whose cause of death was coronavirus-related - the CDC said there was no evidence to suggest this was possible.
Instead, it is so people can adhere to “social distancing” advice, not just in the US, but in countries around the world.
Dr David Berendes, an epidemiologist at CDC, told the webinar: “As you think about planning for the event, limit the number of people if possible, use live-streaming options and perhaps have only immediately family on hand.”
The CDC had earlier recommended limiting gatherings to no more than 50 people, while US President Donald Trump said gatherings should be no larger than 10 people.
This is particularly crucial for events where many guests are considered vulnerable, either because they’re over 70 years old or because of underlying health conditions.
https://www.bbc.com/news/amp/world-us-canada-51935266?__twitter_impression=true
