For nearly a year, restaurant workers everywhere have faced unprecedented challenges as they’ve sought to weather the coronavirus pandemic. “The worst thing about it is the uncertainty,” says Michael Roper, who owns Hopleaf Bar in Chicago and is at high risk for severe COVID-19. “I have only one fully functioning lung. … I don’t want to be gasping for life and have a terrible end. I’m not going to let my guard down.” While COVID-19 is a new disease, and it is impossible to predict which cases will require hospitalization, certain conditions may put individuals at a particularly high risk for developing a severe, life-threatening case. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, high-risk populations include older adults (especially those above the age of 65) and people with certain underlying medical conditions, including cancer, heart disease, pregnancy, moderate-to-severe asthma, and Type 1 diabetes. The CDC advises people who fall into this high-risk category to protect themselves from infection by “limit[ing] your interactions with other people as much as possible.”