North Carolina should be concerned about neighboring states allowing businesses to reopen, two UNC infectious disease experts said Monday.

The reopening of neighboring states’ businesses while the pandemic continues could lead to more coronavirus infections in those states. That, in turn, could lead to more COVID-19 cases in North Carolina, the UNC experts said.

“I think we should have some concerns, said Dr. David Weber, medical director of infection prevention at UNC Hospitals, in a briefing with reporters. “More cases in surrounding states will have implications for North Carolina.”

Some businesses are screening employees for coronavirus symptoms, but some people who are infected don’t have symptoms. They can still spread the virus.

States are under pressure to allow businesses to reopen as the rules meant to inhibit the spread of the virus triggered massive job losses.

Tennessee, Georgia, and South Carolina are allowing some businesses to reopen while telling them to follow social distancing guidelines and abide by occupancy limits.

In Georgia, bowling alleys, tattoo parlors, massage hair and nail salons, and some other businesses were allowed to reopen last week. Theaters and restaurants with dine-in service could reopen today, The Ledger-Enquirer reported.

Tennessee is allowing restaurants to reopen today for sit-down service. Retail stores can reopen on Wednesday.

South Carolina allowed some retail stores to reopen last week and allowed local governments to reopen beaches, The State has reported.

A group called ReOpenNC has been holding protests in Raleigh to demand Gov. Roy Cooper lift restrictions on businesses, The News & Observer has reported. It is planning another rally on Tuesday, the first day of the 2020 General Assembly session.

It will take about two to four weeks to know whether the loosened restrictions in neighboring states result in more coronavirus cases in North Carolina, Weber said.

The loosened rules highlight the need for strong surveillance systems in North Carolina and across the country that track the virus, said Emily Sickbert-Bennett, director of infection prevention at UNC Hospitals.

“As we loosen some of our control measures little by little, we’re able to see what the impacts of those are” and know whether some restrictions should be reinstated, she said.

On Friday, the World Health Organization said there is “no evidence” that people who have recovered from COVID-19 and have antibodies are protected from a second infection.

It’s not known whether people who have become sick a second time have symptoms that are reappearing, or if they were reinfected, Weber said.

Knowing people may be infected twice makes planning more difficult, Weber said, because a positive antibody test is not an assurance that people won’t get COVID-19 again.

Social distancing, wearing masks, and testing need to continue until the widespread community transition is eliminated, he said.

Weber thinks there will be future waves of COVID-19 infection. “We will need to develop a surveillance strategy so we know when to turn back on those preventive measures,” he said.

This story was originally published April 27, 2020 at 2:49 PM with the headline "Loosened virus controls in neighboring states could mean more COVID-19 cases in NC."