Search results
Aug 2, 2023 · Updated on August 2, 2023. Medically reviewed by. Jordana Haber Hazan, MD. Chances are, if you don't already, you will know someone who has had COVID-19. If they're in your inner circle, it...
- 1 min
- Overview
- If you don’t have a fever, you won’t need to isolate
- Who is at risk for COVID-19 now
- Rates of COVID-19 remain high
- Takeaway
•Sources within the CDC have told the Washington Post the agency plans to drop isolation guidelines.
•Currently, the agency recommends people isolate from others for at least five days if they test positive for the virus
•The proposed changes to the guidelines mean people will not need to be isolated if they are fever-free for at least 24 hours without medication, and if their symptoms are mild and improving.
•Public health experts say it is the right time to revise the guidelines.
The CDC reportedly intends to drop isolation recommendations for COVID-19.
Reports from the Washington Post suggest the CDC will release proposed changes to the guidelines in April for public feedback, but they are yet to be signed off by the White House.
Under the proposed changes to isolation requirements, the CDC will recommend that those who test positive for COVID-19 would not need to isolate if they are fever-free for at least 24 hours without the use of medication, and if their symptoms are mild and improving.
CDC officials who spoke with the Washington Post under the condition of anonymity say in internal discussions and in briefings with state health officials last week the CDC has noted the COVID-19 situation has changed since the virus first emerged four years ago.
The new recommendations will be more closely aligned with the agency’s guidance on avoiding transmission of RSV and the flu.
Public health experts who spoke with Healthline say it is the right time to change isolation requirements.
“If and when it becomes official, it will be very welcomed, I think, in most of the public health community, because there have been many folks, myself included, who have been speaking to friends at the CDC for some time, thinking that the isolation guidelines need to be revisited,” Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University told Healthline.
“If you have public health recommendations, and they’re being largely ignored, that’s not good. You’ve got to get in sync with what’s happening. This is not a black-and-white issue, it’s a matter of how well does this work to achieve the goal of reducing transmission. And I think there are many people who have said for some time, this is not working very well at all. It’s not really materially contributing to a reduction in transmission.”
While CDC agency officials say the changes would not apply in hospitals or health care settings with vulnerable populations, they anticipate the changes could be met with a negative response by vulnerable groups.
The CDC’s own guidance notes that older people, those who are immunocompromised, those with certain disabilities and those living with some underlying health conditions are at an increased risk of becoming very sick if they become infected with COVID-19.
Schaffner cares for a family member receiving chemotherapy. He says that even if guidelines change, he will still continue to take appropriate precautions.
“We have never stopped wearing masks when we go to the supermarket, although 99% of people have. So we’re going the extra mile, because we have a special circumstance,” said Schaffner. “That’s what I certainly would advise people to do, who are in a situation similar to ours, you’ve got to go the extra mile, because you’re in a special circumstance.”
Across the country, surveillance from wastewater indicates that rates of COVID-19 are high.
Between January 28 and February 3, there were more than 20,000 new COVID-19 hospital admissions.
Since the pandemic began, in the United States there have been more than 6.5 million hospitalizations and more than 1 million deaths due to COVID-19.
Experts say the CDC’s latest move highlights the ongoing challenge for the agency to strike a balance between public health and other community interests.
“It needs to be practical, and it needs to be science-based and protect people but to protect the most people the best, it’s totally impractical. You can’t just shut everything down like earlier in the pandemic. That’s not feasible,” Blumberg said.
“I think what’s going to be most important is the messaging associated with this. So although the isolation guidelines are easing, COVID still is clearly a serious threat to people’s health, and especially for those who are most vulnerable, they should still take extra precautions that many young healthy people who don’t have comorbidities will not be taking. I continue to recommend masking for those people who are more vulnerable.”
The CDC is expected to end its 5-day isolation recommendations for people with COVID-19. Experts say the change makes sense due to vaccinations and treatments for the disease.
- Elizabeth Pratt
Mar 15, 2024 · New guidance from the CDC advises people to isolate until they have been fever-free and with symptoms improving for at least 24 hours, and then take precautions for five days, which covers the...
Mar 1, 2024 · Though the isolation guidelines have been wiped away, the CDC still encourages people to play it safe for five days after they are feeling better. That includes masking around vulnerable people...
May 24, 2020 · 10 days have passed since test. # Depending on your healthcare provider’s advice and availability of testing, you get tested to see if you still have COVID-19. If you will be tested, you can be around others after you receive two negative test results in a row, at least 24 hours apart.
- 75KB
- 3
As health experts learn more about COVID-19 (remember it’s only been around for about seven months!), there’s evidence that suggest people are no longer contagious 10 days after the infection begins, even if you had symptoms.
Mar 1, 2024 · What CDC knows. As the 2023-2024 fall and winter virus season ends, it’s clear that the situation surrounding COVID-19 has changed. It is still an important health threat, but it is no longer the emergency that it once was, and its health impacts increasingly resemble those of other respiratory viral illnesses, including flu and RSV.
