'''COVID-19''' is a disease caused by a coronavirus first discovered
in 2019. The ensuing pandemic resulted in the cancellation
of competitive SCRABBLE Scrabble activities worldwide, and NASPA's implementation
of color-coded guidelines that imposed a moratorium on in-person play.
== <span style="background-color:#00FFFF">Cyan</span> Play ==
Players may meet for traditional face-to-face competitive SCRABBLE Scrabble using regular playing equipment, subject to the following conditions:
* For all participants (players, directors, and anyone else attending a gathering)
'''On 2020-03-18, we [http://www.icontact-archive.com/archive?c=1384631&f=6038&s=14937&m=286005&t=42bfeecf990f5ae04e8a9ea793c9a29e79393ee2e6b4b72ecef1a231ef1a0fa9 advised] all directors to cancel or postpone all sanctioned club and tournament activity, and to not resume until the appropriate public health authorities have recommended doing so.'''
'''On 2020-06-25, we published guidance on when and how to resume competitive SCRABBLE Scrabble activities according to a four-color SCRABBLE Scrabble safety level scheme.'''
'''On 2021-06-01 we added the [[#Cyan_Play|<span style="background-color:#00FFFF">Cyan</span> Safety Level]] — conditions under which small groups of fully vaccinated players can meet for sanctioned tournament or club play.'''
We will discuss appropriate countermeasures in more detail below
in the context of color-coded SCRABBLE Scrabble safety levels.
== General Principles ==
From 2020 on, we will always be living in an era with a heightened awareness of
the risks of pandemic disease. No matter what the current SCRABBLE Scrabble safety level, be mindful
of your health and safety and those around you.
to unnecessary risk of contagion.
== SCRABBLE NASPA Safety Levels ==
There are different systems in place across the continent for describing
what the current pandemic safety level is, and for recommending correspondingly
appropriate measures. Here is one for our competitive SCRABBLE community,
using a
<span style="background-color:#FFC0C0">red</span> -
scheme from most dangerous to most safe.
The SCRABBLE NASPA safety level applies to specific groups of people gathered for a specific NASPA-sanctioned event (club meeting or tournament).
It is keyed to the government safety levels of each of the participants and venue,
but is more restrictive.
; <span style="background-color:#FFC0C0">Red</span>
: Governments restrict or recommend against all gatherings of fewer than 100 people. No one may meet to play SCRABBLE Scrabble in person.
; <span style="background-color:yellow">Yellow</span>
: Governments allow all business to reopen but require or recommend some social distancing measures. Participants may meet in person and play SCRABBLE Scrabble online on individual devices, but may not share equipment or paper, or approach within six feet (2 m) of each other.
; <span style="background-color:#C0FFC0">Green</span>
: Governments lift all pandemic-related restrictions and recommendations, but there have been confirmed or probable cases within 14 days. Participants may meet and play SCRABBLE Scrabble under <span style="background-color:#C0FFC0">Green</span> rules as described below.
; <span style="background-color:#00FFFF">Cyan</span>
: Governments permit gatherings of unrelated households, and all participants have completed a course of vaccination (such as two doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines) and waited the recommended duration (such as two weeks for the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines) for it to take full effect. Participants may meet and play SCRABBLE Scrabble under <span style="background-color:#00FFFF">Cyan</span> rules as described above.
; <span style="background-color:#C0C0FF">Blue</span>
: There are no government pandemic-related restrictions or recommendations, or confirmed or probable cases within 14 days. Participants may meet and play SCRABBLE Scrabble with no restrictions.
Our color-coded guidance is designed to mitigate risk, but cannot eliminate it. Please think carefully about your personal risk profile when making choices about competing in SCRABBLE Scrabble events.
Failure to comply with color-coded measures will be deemed physical abuse under the [[Code of Conduct]].
=== <span style="background-color:#FFC0C0">''Red''</span> Play ===
Clubs and tournaments should not meet in person when the SCRABBLE NASPA safety level is <span style="background-color:#FFC0C0">Red</span> .
Clubs may play online using [[Software#SCRABBLE_GO | SCRABBLE GOonline apps]] and meeting tools such as Zoom or Discord. If they do so formally, the [[Code of Conduct]] is in effect.
NASPA will not rate online tournaments or recognize records achieved at online events.
=== <span style="background-color:#C0FFC0">''Green''</span> Play ===
Players may meet for traditional face-to-face competitive SCRABBLE Scrabble using regular
playing equipment, subject to the following conditions:
* Players who have been in <span style="background-color:yellow">Yellow</span> or <span style="background-color:#FFC0C0">Red</span> rules areas within 14 days of the event must not participate. If after the event begins, the director discovers that a player has been in a <span style="background-color:yellow">Yellow</span> or <span style="background-color:#FFC0C0">Red</span> rules area, that player must withdraw from the event immediately. Any equipment used by that player must be removed from play or disinfected if not possible to remove. The director must announce the reason for the player's withdrawal and ensure that the player's opponents are informed.
== SCRABBLE NASPA Safety Level FAQ ==
; What does all government guidance mean?
: ''All governmental guidance means guidance issued by federal, state/provincial, tribal, territorial and county/municipal authorities in both the locality in which a participant resides and the locality in which the gathering takes place. Guidance includes but may not be limited to laws, by-laws, regulations, recommendations and guidelines. Where guidance includes restrictions on nonessential activities, Scrabble events should be considered nonessential. An event must conform to the most restrictive guidance issued by any government authority. For example, if the state imposes no restrictions on gatherings but the federal government limits indoor gatherings to 25 people, the event limit is 25 people.''
; How can I tell what the SCRABBLE NASPA safety level is for a specific event?: ''If you are not sure how to apply the rules, you may email us at info@scrabbleplayers.org and we will research the matter for you. That is, if you tell us what your municipal, state and federal recommendations are, we will tell you what SCRABBLE Scrabble safety level they imply.''
; I had COVID-19 already. Do I need to be vaccinated to participate in a <span style="background-color:#00FFFF">Cyan</span> event?
: Yes. All participants must have completed a course of vaccination and waited the recommended duration for it to take effect. Experts do not yet know how long you are protected after recovering from COVID-19.
; My club has 10 members, not all of whom are vaccinated. Government authorities in my area restrict groups larger than 50 from meeting, but permit small groups of vaccinated to meet in private. Can my club meet?
: ''Your area is in the <span style="background-color:yellow">Yellow</span> SCRABBLE NASPA safety level because the government is recommending some social distancing measures. Your club can meet under <span style="background-color:yellow">Yellow</span> rules, and may be eligible to play under <span style="background-color:#00ffff">Cyan</span> rules if everyone present has been vaccinated.''
; What color rules are in effect near borders or at regional tournaments?
: ''There may be ambiguity about which color is in effect in a given situation, especially if play is to take place in a location close to a public health jurisdictional boundary, or if players are travelling to an event from multiple areas. In such cases, the most serious, restrictive rules apply. For example, if a tournament director in Yukon wants to take advantage of their territory's SCRABBLE NASPA <span style="background-color:#C0FFC0">Green</span> status, they may do so as long as no one travels to their tournament from or through any area where <span style="background-color:yellow">Yellow</span> or <span style="background-color:#FFC0C0">Red</span> rules would be in effect.''
; How do travel bubbles work?
: ''A travel bubble is a governmental agreement to allow the same rules to hold within a group of jurisdictions. If all participants are within the same travel bubble, then the most restrictive rules in any jurisdiction within the bubble apply. For example, if there is a travel bubble in Atlantic Canada, New Brunswick is <span style="background-color:#C0C0FF">Blue</span> and Nova Scotia is <span style="background-color:#C0FFC0">Green</span>, then an event in New Brunswick would be held under <span style="background-color:#C0FFC0">Green</span> rules even if all participants are from New Brunswick.''
; What if some businesses are open and some are not, or some require social distancing but others do not?
: ''<span style="background-color:yellow">Yellow</span> rules remain in effect until all businesses are open without restrictions.''
; Do you have a map showing SCRABBLE NASPA safety levels?
: ''It is not practical to create such a map, because the safety level summarizes a situation based on a given group of people in a given place at a given time. Changes to situations and guidance may be issued by public health authorities at different times each day, and they are not always presented in a way that is easy for nonlocals to understand.''
; How fine-grained would a map be that showed SCRABBLE NASPA safety levels?
: ''If such a map could be constructed, it would be as fine-grained as needed to incorporate variations in government recommendations. For example, if a city says that residents of one particularly at risk neighborhood should stay home while everyone else is free to do as they please, then that neighborhood would be <span style="background-color:#ffc0c0">Red</span> while everyone else would be <span style="background-color:#C0C0FF">Blue</span> or <span style="background-color:#C0FFC0">Green</span>.
; Why do I have to stand six feet (2 m) away from my domestic partner?
=== If you are sick ===
* If you have a fever and/or a contagious disease (such as COVID-19, influenza, chickenpox or measles), do not go to a SCRABBLE NASPA club or tournament where you may spread it to others.* If you have a mild contagious airborne disease (such as a common cold), do not go to a SCRABBLE NASPA club or tournament where you may spread it to others. You might also be carrying a more serious disease unwittingly, and risk spreading it when you cough or sneeze.
* If you have allergies that make you sneeze or cough, take medication to prevent this from happening during a game, and wear a face covering in case it still happens.
* If you have to sneeze or cough during a game, and are not wearing a face mask, do so into a tissue or your elbow and away from all playing equipment and players. Then ask your opponent to pause the clock and call the director to discuss whether you should withdraw from the event. If you decide to continue, wash your hands before resuming play. If you have to leave the playing area to wash your hands, do so under the terms of [[Rules|Rule]] IV.L (Leaving the Playing Area During a Game).
* If you are immunosuppressed or otherwise at higher risk of contracting a respiratory illness, or at higher risk of serious consequences, do not go to a SCRABBLE NASPA club or tournament without clearance from a medical doctor and the event director.
* At a competitive event, you will be required to play all assigned opponents, regardless of your medical condition or theirs (although if one of you is visibly ill, you will be asked to leave). If you are not healthy enough to play all your opponents, you should stay home until you are.
* If you become aware after an event has started that your participation is endangering your health or that of your fellow players, inform the director as soon as you can, and withdraw from the event. According to [[Rules|Rule]] V.K. (Forfeits and Byes), if you leave mid-game you will be awarded a rated loss for the game in progress; any subsequent games will not affect your rating.