As part of its coronavirus-related guidance, the California Department of Public Health urged Californians to replace “traditional trick-or-treating” on Halloween with a “household candy hunt.”
The public health bureaucracy shared its coronavirus advisory via Instagram with accompanying illustrations.
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A post shared by CA Dept of Public Health (@capublichealth) on Oct 31, 2020 at 9:45am PDT
California’s health department wrote:
Happy Halloween! Please remember to follow guidance and enjoy safer, alternative celebrations that don’t spread coronavirus to your family and in your community. For some alternatives go to covid19.ca.gov/holidays
#YourActionsSaveLives#HappyHalloween#COVID19
The Golden State’s official health guidance listed two series of three different Halloween celebration scenarios — one for children and another for adults — it characterized as carrying three different levels of risk.
The advisory deems “traditional trick-or-treating,” in which kids go door-to-door collecting candies, as “high risk”. The associated illustration includes a yellow and black “DANGER” warning.
For adults, a “virtual costume contest” is suggested as a “low risk” alternative relative to “open-air gatherings” (cast as “moderate risk) and “indoor parties” (cast as “high risk” alongside a yellow and black “DANGER” label).
Many of the cartoon characters in the health department’s advisory are drawn with masks.
California Health and Human Services Director Dr. Mark Ghaly recently urged families to restrict gatherings to no more than three households.