[teejers1]

does 500 new cases since arrival represent an unacceptable health risk in Tuscaloosa?  If every single one of them recovers in short order w/o needing to usurp hospital resources, then the answer is no.

that assumes those 500 did not infect anyone else, which of course they did, including possibly some faculty/staff too.

True.  Which is why I think community hospital capacity is such a critical fact.  If you cannot "crush the curve" and stomp out the virus via SiP - and in my opinion that horse left the barn months ago (possibly even before anyone of importance in the US had a clue) - then THE most important thing is assuring that those who need hospital treatment get it.  That would include Professor X at University College; as well as Grandma who ran into college student at the local grocery store.

But it's also important to acknowledge that under any "activity" scenario, risk goes up, including fatality risk in some quantum, particularly for vulnerable groups.  Incremental risk, weighed against incremental benefit; and is that risk "acceptable" by whatever standards/thinking is in place.  Same thought process for any kind of activity.  At least that's how I look at it.

[teejers1]

does 500 new cases since arrival represent an unacceptable health risk in Tuscaloosa?  If every single one of them recovers in short order w/o needing to usurp hospital resources, then the answer is no.

that assumes those 500 did not infect anyone else, which of course they did, including possibly some faculty/staff too.

True.  Which is why I think community hospital capacity is such a critical fact.  If you cannot "crush the curve" and stomp out the virus via SiP - and in my opinion that horse left the barn months ago (possibly even before anyone of importance in the US had a clue) - then THE most important thing is assuring that those who need hospital treatment get it.  That would include Professor X at University College; as well as Grandma who ran into college student at the local grocery store.

But it's also important to acknowledge that under any "activity" scenario, risk goes up, including fatality risk in some quantum, particularly for vulnerable groups.  Incremental risk, weighed against incremental benefit; and is that risk "acceptable" by whatever standards/thinking is in place.  Same thought process for any kind of activity.  At least that's how I look at it.