With safety being a chief concern for many of us this holiday season, WalletHub compared the 50 states across 10 key metrics to see which provide the safest conditions for the Thanksgiving holiday. The data set includes metrics examining the following:
- How the state is handling the COVID-19 pandemic, such as positive tests and deaths per capita in the past week, as well as other indicators of general safety like the crime rate and the average number of DUI-related fatalities in November.
Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the safest conditions for Thanksgiving celebrations.
They determined each state’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order the states.
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- COVID-19 Death Rate in the Past Week per Capita: Triple Weight (~18.75 Points)
- COVID-19 Positive Tests in the Past Week per Capita: Double Weight (~12.50 Points)
- COVID-19 Hospitalization Rate This Week: Double Weight (~12.50 Points)
- Requirement to Wear a Face Mask in Public: Full Weight (~6.25 Points)
Below is our list of the top 11 safest states. Please keep in mind that state and local mask and social distancing requirements change nearly weekly, so some of this information could change before or on Thanksgiving.
The main thing to remember is how your visit will affect your health and the health of those around you. Some questions you should answer before hosting a gathering for Thanksgiving are:
1.) Has anyone (including you) already had COVID-19?
2.) Does anyone have underlying conditions that could put them at an elevated risk of developing the coronavirus?
3.) Have the family or friends you are visiting been practicing safety guidelines?
4.) Who's really pushing for you to be there? And why?
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Now, without further ado, here is the list:
11. Pennsylvania
10. Maryland
9. New Jersey
8. Hawaii
7. Massachusetts
6. Virginia
5. Washington
4. New York
3. New Hampshire
2. Maine
1. Vermont
Now, if you're looking to just forget about a traditional Thanksgiving and travel abroad, here are the CDC recommendations on international destination that have the lowest risk for contracting COVID:
American Samoa
Anguilla
Bermuda
Brunei
Cambodia
Falkland Islands
Fiji
Greenland
Grenada
Laos
Macau SAR
Marshall Islands
Micronesia
Mongolia
Montserrat
Northern Mariana Islands
Palau
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Taiwan
Timor-Leste
Vietnam
