Dear Brown Community Members,

Last evening, after this morning’s COVID-19 Campus Safety Update had been finalized for Today@Brown distribution, the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) announced that Providence, Bristol, Kent and Washington Counties are now considered higher-risk areas according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) COVID-19 Community Levels risk assessment. CDC determines risk level using three metrics: new COVID-19 admissions per 100,000 population in the past seven days, the percent of staffed inpatient beds occupied by COVID-19 patients, and total new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 population in the past seven days.

Accordingly, RIDOH and CDC recommend taking additional precautions, including:

• Stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccines and boosters.

• Wear a well-fitting mask indoors in public, regardless of vaccination status (including in K-12 schools and other indoor community settings).

• If you have household or social contact with someone at high risk, consider self-testing and wearing a mask when indoors with them.

• Get tested if you have symptoms or have been exposed to someone with COVID-19.

Further information from RIDOH can be found on their website, and the CDC’s full set of recommendations is available on their website.

The CDC also issued new important new recommendations and guidance yesterday regarding COVID-19 vaccine booster doses. CDC now recommends that children ages 5 through 11 years should receive a booster shot 5 months after their initial Pfizer-BioNTech vaccination series. In addition, CDC strengthened its recommendation that those 12 and older who are immunocompromised and those 50 and older should receive a second booster dose at least 4 months after their first. The full CDC announcement on these topics can be read on their website here. Vaccines and booster doses are widely available at community clinics and retail pharmacies and information on finding a location to obtain one can be found on the vaccines.gov website.

Given the high levels of vaccination and overall public health conditions on the Brown campus we are not, at this time, making any changes to the health protocols outlined on the Campus Activity Status website, including with regard to indoor mask wearing. However, as we complete the spring semester and approach Commencement and Reunion Weekend, we strongly encourage all members of the Brown community to review the additional precautions recommended by RIDOH and the CDC and follow that guidance in instances where the recommended measures can help protect your own health and that of the community.

Sincerely,

Russell C. Carey
Executive Vice President, Planning and Policy