Can I use a public bathroom?

Yes, you can use a public bathroom as long as you follow some simple steps. There’s nothing about using a public bathroom that puts you at higher risk of catching COVID-19. It’s just another place where you might come into contact with someone who is infected.

Most of these steps are what you should be doing every time you use a public bathroom, even if COVID weren’t a problem:

• Wear a mask, especially if there might be other people in the bathroom..

• Wash (or sanitize) your hands BEFORE going into the bathroom. This decreases the chance that you transmit COVID to someone else if you are infected.

• Don’t touch your face or your phone while you are in the bathroom: You don’t want to transfer bacteria or viruses from surfaces in the bathroom onto your face or phone.

• Wash your hands with soap and water for 20 seconds and dry them after you use the bathroom. This was as important before COVID as it is now

• After you leave the bathroom, consider using hand sanitizer: This makes sure you don’t catch anything from touching the bathroom door on the way out.

As communities re-open and people spend more time outside of the house, these are some simple steps to make using a public bathroom as safe as possible

Last update: June 16th, 2020, 7:35 am ET

Science review: JAB, AHN