COVID Advisory

The Travis County level of COVID-19 is now at a ‘LOW’ level per the CDC. 

In keeping with the original intention of following the CDC guidance for safe practice at Appamada, the Appamada Covid Response Group has updated on-site practice guidelines. Please remember that Appamada offers both online and on-site participation.

In a nutshell, the changes  to the onsite guidelines are to no longer require vaccines & boosters but to strongly encourage all onsite participants to have them. We also have increased the spacing between seats in the zendo. This is in response to evolving information about the spread of aerosol viruses and the effects of immunity due to past illness and to vaccines. The post-exposure and positive COVID guidance has also be revised; see below. 

Vaccines and boosters are strongly recommended for onsite programs (https://tinyurl.com/CDC-Booster-9-23). Masks for on-site practice are available and strongly encouraged for those in high risk groups (https://tinyurl.com/CDCHighRisk-5-23). 

If you are ill or if you discover you’ve been exposed to COVID, please stay home and join us online. If you test positive and you’ve been to Appamada in person within the past 72 hours, please send an email to:  appamadareturn@googlegroups.com so the sangha can be informed. We won’t divulge your name.

The simple good advice is to sanitize hands, cover nose & mouth when coughing/sneezing.

The Appamada COVID Working Group would like to offer the following guidance for when to return to on-site participation after being exposed to or having COVID:

If you have been exposed to COVID: The onset of symptoms after exposure averages 2-3 days. Home tests are not as accurate in the first few days of the infection. Whether or not you have any symptoms, check a home test at 3 days and 5 days after exposure. If both tests are negative, the risk of having COVID is very low and you may return to on-site practice.

If you have gotten COVID: A negative Rapid Antigen (‘home test”) test is considered to be an accurate measure of contagiousness. Please refrain from on-site participation until you have a negative result on a home test.

Thank you for your care and consideration for the sangha in following these guidelines; may we all appreciate our presence together!

For any questions, please email the working group at appamadareturn@googlegroups.com