This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Sunday recommended that no gatherings with 50 people or more take place for the next eight weeks to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The agency said these gatherings include conferences, festivals, parades, concerts, sporting events, weddings and other types of assemblies.

“Large events and mass gatherings can contribute to the spread of COVID-19 in the United States via travelers who attend these events and introduce the virus to new communities,” the CDC said in its new guidelines.

The CDC recommended organizers “cancel or postpone in-person events that consist of 50 people or more throughout the United States.” The recommendation does not apply to some organizations like schools or businesses.

The new guidance underscores just how much life in the United States will change as the country continues to fight the outbreak, and as officials nationwide order more schools, bars and restaurants to close.

“For a while, life is not going to be the way it used to be in the United States,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said on CNN’s “State of the Union” Sunday morning. “We have to just accept that if we want to do what’s best for the American public.”

There are at least 3,482 coronavirus cases in 49 states, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands and Washington DC, according to government agencies and the CDC. At least 65 people have died. West Virginia remains the only state without any confirmed cases.

The US can expect more cases and deaths, Fauci said at a White House briefing Saturday, telling reporters: “We have not yet reached our peak.”