DES MOINES, Iowa — Whether you like it or not, Iowa is on its way to reopening its economy.
Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Wednesday that effective May 15, more restrictions will be relaxed across the state.
Because of that, Dr. Rossana Rosa, an infectious disease specialist in Iowa, said she wants to educate the public on how to stay safe while out.
"This is the reality that we are going to be living through," Dr. Rosa said. "My goal will be to try to keep Iowans informed in ways that they can safely engage in society."
Step one, Dr. Rosa said, is to continue staying physically distant from others in public whenever possible.
"Try to stay six feet apart from other people," Dr. Rosa said. "When you go out, wear a face shield or a face mask. It's important that we support businesses, but that we support them in a safe way. Dining at restaurants, I personally know that I'm not going to be doing that, but I do continue to support my favorite restaurants through drive-thru and delivery."
Dr. Rosa also suggested calling ahead to places you plan to visit to ask what they're doing to protect both their customers and their staff.
"It's okay to ask, 'How many people are you allowing at your facility at one time? Are you staggering the amount of staff that you keep in? Are you requiring your customers and your staff to wear face coverings?" Dr. Rosa said.
Dr. Rosa also said engaging in outdoor activities is also safe so long as you continue to practice physical distancing.
Dr. Rosa said even with mandated restrictions being lifted in Iowa Friday, it's still a personal choice as to whether or not you feel safe venturing out.
"At the end of the day, each one of us will decide how we are going to reengage in society," Dr. Rosa said. "Whatever things we are going to do, we need to do them in a safe way. Even though we have had a lot of infections and even though there is an active transmission, the overwhelming majority of us are still susceptible to that infection."
Dr. Rosa said those that are 65 and older or have underlying conditions also need to exercise more caution.
"We know that patients who are older than 65 are at an increased risk of poor outcomes if they contract COVID-19," Dr. Rosa said. "Also people who have certain comorbidities such as hypertension, heart disease, a chronic lung disease, those are all things that also can really go against you if you get COVID. Patients who have what we call immunosuppression, whether that is because they have cancer, or have received the transplant or take certain medications that lower your immune system's ability to fight infections, those are people that need to be very careful because again, there is ongoing transmission within our communities."