What's the risk of catching coronavirus from a surface?

Fears about catching the coronavirus from contaminated surfaces have prompted many of us to spend the past few months wiping down groceries, leaving packages unopened and stressing about touching elevator buttons. But what’s the real risk of catching COVID-19 from a germy surface or object? The question has been on people’s minds lately, and there was some confusion after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made some edits to its website last week. Social media sites and some news outlets suggested the agency had downgraded its warnings and that surface transmission was no longer a worry. The CDC subsequently issued a news release to clarify that indirect contact from a...