Mayor Sylvester Turner hosts conference call for Houston faith leaders; shares recommendations to reduce risk of COVID-19 spread

During a conference call Friday morning  with Houston faith leaders, Mayor Turner provided a list of recommendations for those who had questions about holding regularly scheduled religious services over the weekend.

Mayor Turner said he will worship at his home church, as he does every Sunday and the city of Houston is not currently ordering any local church, synagogue, mosque or temple to cancel services.

“If they plan to move forward, people have to exercise their own judgement. I am not telling religious organizations what to do. It is up to faith leaders to decide if they want to hold in-person or online streaming services,” Mayor Turner said. “It is very important for everyone to be responsible in what they are doing.”

Recommendations for Houston Faith-Organizations

  • Ask members to stay home, if they have traveled internationally or domestically where cases of COVID-19, coronavirus disease have been reported

  • Educate members who are over the age of 60 who may have who have severe underlying chronic medical conditions like heart disease or lung disease or diabetes, and encourage them to avoid large crowds

  • Practice social distancing (spacing) to help contain and mitigate the spread of COVID-19

  • No hugging

  • No handshaking

  • Provide COVID-prevention supplies to staff, volunteers, and those you serve

  • Houstonians can contact the Houston Health Department COVID-19 Call Center for information about the disease or get their questions answered. 

This week, the Houston Health Department offered updated guidance to Houstonians intended to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and reduce the number of people infected. The guidance and other COVID-19 information is available in more than a dozen languages at HoustonEmergency.org/COVID19.