Safety
- Visitors to New Orleans should be aware that the city has a high crime rate by some measures. While violent crime is predominantly concentrated around drug and gang activity, scammers and petty thieves are also attracted to the large number of tourists. The New Orleans Police Department maintains a strong presence in areas like the French Quarter and Central Business District that are popular with visitors. You can maximize your chances for a totally safe visit to New Orleans by exericsing reasonable precautions like:
- Don't travel alone. Stay in groups.
- Stick to well-lit, high-traffic areas.
- Take taxis, uber, lyft, or public transport when venturing significant distances.
- Don't carry significant cash or valuables.
- Be aware of your surroundings and wary of people that solicit you uninvited.
Health
- Emergency care is available near the conference site at University Medical Center and Tulane Medical Center.
- There are also numerous Urgent Care clinics in the area including
Oschner Urgent Care and Concentra.
- Our visitors who are (or may become) pregnant, should keep themselves aware of the situation in Louisiana regarding reproductive health care services. Currently, Louisiana's law that criminalizes abortion is in effect, and the Women's Health Care Center in New Orleans has closed. While Louisiana's abortion ban provides exceptions for health concerns, the nature of those exceptions is being challenged in court as vague.
Local Organizing Committee:
J. Blackmon (chair), C. Deibel, J. Draayer, L. Kaplan, K. Launey, S. Marley, and F. Wietfeldt