Here’s a little open thread for today since different organizations and different cities are all over the place: how is your office handling the pandemic at this point?

• is your office open? are you required to go in (or will you be at some definite date in 2022)?
• does your office have a vaccine mandate/regular testing requirement? does it require masks, and if so where are masks required (e.g., shared spaces only?) (Have the holidays and/or Omicron affected the policy?)
• has your office done anything of note about air quality, such as filters, Corsi-Rosenthal boxes, CO2 meters, or more?
• are you told if someone in your office has tested positive for COVID? (this Q inspired by a recent Ethicist column in the NYT!) is there contract tracing? (If your hallmate tested positive but you did not work together, would you expect to know?)
• does your office have a supply of COVID tests to distribute for free, or do they otherwise encourage testing (such as reimbursing purchased tests?)
• is your workplace having holiday parties or gatherings this year (in person or via Zoom)?
• (how are you personally handling work/COVID precautions at this point — are you in the office, what are your choices around masking, do you have windows open or a personal air filter, etc? If you have your own office with a door are you wearing your mask in your office? Have you changed your commute in response to the holidays/Omicron/the pandemic in general?)

What a time to be alive, right? I can’t wait to see the different responses…

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If you’re curious about some of the products mentioned above here are some links — I’d love to hear if you’ve had good or bad experiences with anything.

• CO2 meters – strongly considering getting one of these for our family. Here’s a NYT article on how they work, this Aranet device ($250) is the one I’ve considered purchasing in the past.
• Corsi-Rosenthal boxes: really powerful air filters you can DIY for about $100 with a box fan and 20×20 MERV 13 filters (available at spots like Lowes and Home Depot). Here’s an NPR story on how to build them and why…
• Personal air filters (here’s what the EPA says – they don’t hurt but aren’t enough by themselves): Pure Enrichment ($40), Wynd ($199) — my oldest son has something like this that he only turns on at lunchtime — I figured it might not help but it wouldn’t hurt. We’re also considering this car air filter but I want to research more (I’ve read that some filters increase the chance of static electricity, so I need to assess what that means for cars and what my comfort level with that is).
• At-home COVID tests – both CVS and Walgreens sell at-home COVID tests, your local library and other sources may have them for free.

Let’s hear from you guys — what is your office doing? What are you doing at work? (Also, where are your best sources for good masks — and are you changing your mask choices at this time?)