Officials with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health are urging residents who participated in protests over the past two weeks to self-quarantine, as well as get tested for COVID-19.

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Black Lives Matter protests broke out across Los Angeles County, as well as throughout the country and around the world, over the past several weeks following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

“We’re facing critically important issues and we’re engaging in crucial work, and many are committed in this moment in the continuing fight to end racism,” said Dr. Barbara Ferrer, director of the L.A. County Department of Public Health. “I applaud all of those who have stood for justice over the last two weeks.”

These protests, including several in the Santa Clarita Valley, saw hundreds of people congregate together in close proximity to one another, something that Los Angeles County public health officials were trying to prevent with the “Safer at Home” order.

“We’re still in the midst of a pandemic,” Ferrer said. “COVID-19 remains easy to transmit, and as you hear from our data during the week, it does continue to cause serious illness and death. Every single social interaction that happens outside your household comes with risk.”

See Related: 125 Additional Coronavirus Cases Reported In Santa Clarita Valley, 1,225 In L.A. County

In light of this, officials with Los Angeles County are advising residents who participated in protests to enter self-quarantine, as well as get tested for COVID-19.

“If you spent time at large gatherings, whether this was at the beach and a shopping mall or protesting peacefully, and you think it’s possible that you’ve been exposed to COVID-19 because you were not able to keep physical distance and not everyone near you was wearing a cloth face covering, the best step to take is to self-quarantine for 14 days,” Ferrer said. “If you’ve been exposed to someone at these gatherings that’s positive or likely to have been positive for COVID-19, it is appropriate to get tested.”

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While many protesters may test negative for the virus, Ferrer urged them to still enter self-quarantine, as a negative test result “does not mean that you can’t become infected during the 14-day incubation.”

“This is why even if you tested negative it’s still important to self quarantine for 14 days,” she said. “If you do start to develop symptoms, you need to contact your healthcare provider and now you will need to isolate for an additional 10 days.”

Los Angeles County officials have posted guidelines on how to properly self-quarantine. To view them, click here.

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