Key Takeaways

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced on Monday that the agency is shortening the isolation time for people who test positive for COVID-19 from 10 days to five days .

The guidance follows shortened recommendations for healthcare workers who test positive for the virus, released just before Christmas.

What Is Isolation?Isolationis the term for what you do when you have a confirmed COVID infection, even if you do not have symptoms.Quarantineis the term for what you do when you have only been exposed (in close contact with) someone who has COVID.

What Is Isolation?

Isolationis the term for what you do when you have a confirmed COVID infection, even if you do not have symptoms.Quarantineis the term for what you do when you have only been exposed (in close contact with) someone who has COVID.

What If You Were Exposed, But Haven’t Tested Positive?

The CDC has also updated quarantine guidance for those who are exposed to COVID-19 but haven’t tested positive. The guidance is different for the vaccinated and the unvaccinated/not yet boosted.

Individuals who have received their booster shot do not need to quarantine following an exposure, but should wear a mask for 10 days after the exposure.

For all those exposed, best practice includes a COVID test (antigen or PCR) five days after exposure. If symptoms occur, individuals should immediately quarantine until a negative test confirms symptoms are not attributable to COVID-19.

Why Is the Guidance Changing?

The Omicron variant is what drove the update. In recent weeks, COVID-19caseshave increased, with many parts of the country experiencing substantial levels ofcommunity transmission. As more people become infected or exposed, the CDC needed to reevaluate how long they really needed to be down for the count.

CDC director Rochelle Walensky explained the decision to update the guidelines in a statement issued on Monday.

Omicron Is Spreading Quickly. What Can We Expect in the New Year?

Pushback From Nurses

Still, others say the guidance is realistic based on the current state of the pandemic.

“The guidelines maximize the chances that society does not grind to a half over the next few weeks over the rise in cases, the majority of which will be mild,”Shira Doron, MD,hospital epidemiologist at Tufts Medical Center, told Verywell.

More Changes to Come

Robert Lahita, MD, PhD,a clinical professor of medicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and the chairman of the department of medicine at St. Joseph’s Healthcare System, in Wayne, New Jersey, told Verywell that while he thinks the CDC guidance is sound, it’s not the last change we’ll see.

Amesh Adalja, MD, FIDSA, senior scholar at the Center for Health Security at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, agrees.

“I think the guidance makes sense and is scientifically sound,” Adalja told Verywell. “Hopefully, it could be shortened further using rapid tests.”

Of course, you’ve probably heard how hard it is to find ahome-based testor schedule a clinic test and that results are taking longer, sometimes rendering testing useless.

Testing availability should improve soon. In a call with state governors on Monday, President Bidenoutlined what the White House is doing:

Does Health Insurance Cover At-Home COVID Tests?

Advice for Testing

Patrick Emad, vice president of clinic operations for Sameday Health, a chain of clinics that offer COVID-19 testing, explains that while antigen (rapid) tests are often analyzed at the clinic for quick results, most PCR tests are shuttled to a lab. In the case of Sameday Health, this happens several times a day. If travel or other needs make getting fast PCR results imperative, you’re best off booking a test early in the day.

PCR vs. Rapid Test for COVID-19: Which Should You Take?

“And if you decide not to come in for a scheduled test, cancel the one you’ve booked to open the spot up for someone else,” Emad said.

What This Means For YouIf you test positive for COVID-19, regardless of vaccination status, isolate yourself for at least five days. If you were exposed to COVID-19 and haven’t tested positive, things are a little more complicated. But if you’re overdue for a booster or unvaccinated, your first step should be quarantining yourself for five days, too.

What This Means For You

If you test positive for COVID-19, regardless of vaccination status, isolate yourself for at least five days. If you were exposed to COVID-19 and haven’t tested positive, things are a little more complicated. But if you’re overdue for a booster or unvaccinated, your first step should be quarantining yourself for five days, too.

The information in this article is current as of the date listed, which means newer information may be available when you read this. For the most recent updates on COVID-19, visit ourcoronavirus news page.

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