“Well, we thought that since my son tested negative before we all traveled for the holiday it was safe. Then he got a call while were together that he’d been exposed. By the time he showed symptoms, he’d infected us all. And I’m not doing so great. It wasn’t worth it-not at all.”

A negative COVID test does mean you don’t have COVID. It just means it’s unlikely that you were infected 7-10 days ago. It’s not a crystal ball. And it’s certainly not a get out of jail free card. Live accordingly.

This was overheard at the infusion center. Not me. We haven’t traveled, seen family since 2019 and our kids are little. But it is the same thing we heard after Thanksgiving. And we will hear it over and over again for the next several weeks at least.

Correction of typo: A negative COVID test does NOT mean you don’t have COVID. It just means it’s unlikely that you were infected 7-10 days ago. It’s not a crystal ball. And it’s certainly not a get out of jail free card. Live accordingly.