Many people are returning home this weekend following the Thanksgiving holiday, and all that travel has health experts worried COVID-19 numbers will jump again.

COVID-19 hospitalizations reached record highs Thanksgiving week, surpassing previous surges and showing no signs of slowing down. Experts fear it could get much worse.

Emergency physician Dr. Leana Wen says, "I think many people who traveled did get together with loved ones indoors who were not part of their immediate family. In which case, because there's such high level of coronavirus all over the country…essentially, the entire America is a hot spot, you don't want to be sending coronavirus infections in the community you're traveling to."

The physician recommends residents who traveled for Thanksgiving to take precautions.

"I would recommend to for everyone to quarantine for at least seven days, and then get a test," says Dr. Wen. "If you cannot get a COVID test, then quarantine for 14 days."

On Friday, the U.S. marked the 25th day in a row with more than 100,000 new daily coronavirus cases. The country's death toll now stands at more than 265,000.

According to an ensemble forecast published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week, between 29,000 to 56,000 more people could die over the next three weeks.

Professor of Emergency Medicine at Oregon Health and Science University Dr. Esther Choo says, "We are in a month where health care workers have been getting COVID at alarming rates. Mayo Clinic alone reported 900 of us healthcare workers got COVID-19 over a two-week period."

A CDC advisory committee will vote Tuesday on recommendations for the very first group to get a COVID-19 vaccine once one gets emergency use authorization by the Food and Drug Administration.