What We Are Doing in the Event of COVID-19 Exposure at the Gym
We understand that cases are on the rise pretty much everywhere. And, as we head into the winter months when it is less comfortable for us to be outside, or at least have our garage doors open, we need to ALL be mindful of transmission rates and safety measures so that we can keep ourselves and our community safe and healthy.
So far we have been lucky that our exposure in the gym has been low. We have had only 1 incident and, because we followed all guidelines, we were able to contain the incident and keep potential transmission very low.
In the event of any future positive cases in the gym, we will follow all Minnesota Department of Health guidelines to minimize transmission. Here are the details:
If you or someone you have been in contact with tests positive, please contact us immediately.
Close contact is defined as being within 6-feet for a cumulative 15 minutes or longer in a 24-hour period.
If we learn of any positive cases we will use our attendance rosters to immediately contact anyone who has had exposure to the positive case and inform each individual of their exposure and ask that he/she abide by the 14-day quarantine period.
Individuals that test positive can return to work following an isolation period of 10 days after their symptoms begin/positive test result as long as their symptoms have improved and they have not had a fever for the last 24 hours (and given that they have not taken fever-reducing medications during that time). A second test is not recommended, as individuals can test positive for a significant period of time after they are no longer infectious.
Anyone who has been in close contact with anyone that tests positive should quarantine for 14 days starting the day following their last exposure. You can find materials here (available in multiple languages) that provide additional information for anyone exposed.
We recommend that exposed individuals be tested 5-7 days following exposure. However, please understand that a negative result during your quarantine does not change the quarantine recommendations given that incubation can be anywhere from 2-14 days.
If employees or members are exhibiting symptoms but test negative we will ask that they follow the 10-day isolation period from when their symptoms started.
Please remember to wear a mask in the gym whenever you are not engaged in a training session. Clean your equipment thoroughly after use, and stay 6’ away from other members at all times. We can work together to keep each other safe!
Additional Resources:
The Minnesota Department of Health COVID-19 website can be found here.
The CDC website showing that requiring a negative test is no longer recommended is here.
If you have any additional questions please feel free to contact Heidi directly via phone or email, or you can also email the general Minnesota COVID-19 inbox at covid19@minneapolismn.gov.