Current:Home > ContactU.S. health officials drop 5-day isolation time for COVID-19 -Secure Horizon Growth
U.S. health officials drop 5-day isolation time for COVID-19
View
Date:2025-04-14 03:22:50
NEW YORK (AP) — Americans who test positive for COVID-19 no longer need to stay in isolation for five days, U.S. health officials announced Friday.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed its longstanding guidance, saying that people can return to work or regular activities if their symptoms are mild and improving and it’s been a day since they’ve had a fever.
The change comes at a time when COVID-19 is no longer the public health menace it once was. It dropped from being the nation’s third leading cause of death early in the pandemic to 10th last year.
Most people have some degree of immunity to the coronavirus from past vaccinations or from infections. And many people are not following the five-day isolation guidance anyway, some experts say.
“Our goal here is to continue to protect those at risk for severe illness while also reassuring folks that these recommendation are simple, clear, easy to understand, and can be followed,” said Dr. Mandy Cohen, the CDC’s director,
However, some experts worry that the change may increase the risk of infection for those people who are more vulnerable to developing severe illness.
WHY ARE THE GUIDELINES CHANGING?
COVID-19 is not causing as many hospitalizations and deaths as it did in the first years of the pandemic. The change is an effort to streamline recommendations so they are similar to longstanding recommendations for flu and other respiratory viruses. Many people with a runny nose, cough or other symptoms aren’t testing to distinguish whether it’s COVID-19, flu, or something else, officials say.
This may not be as stringent, but also emphasizes that all people with respiratory symptoms should stay home while they are sick, said Dr. David Margolius, the head of Cleveland’s health department.
There’s been no recent change in the science of how long people with COVID-19 are likely contagious, said Jennifer Nuzzo, director of the Pandemic Center at Brown University’s School of Public Health.
“What has changed is how much COVID is harming us as a population,” Nuzzo said.
WHAT ARE THE NEW GUIDELINES?
If you have symptoms, stay home until your symptoms are mild and improving and it’s been a day since you’ve had a fever. But then you can remain cautious by wearing a mask and keeping a distance from others.
There is no change to guidelines for nursing homes and health care facilities, however.
The agency is emphasizing that people should still try to prevent infections in the first place, by getting vaccinated, washing their hands, and taking steps to bring in more outdoor fresh air.
IS THERE OPPOSITION TO THIS CHANGE?
Yes, and even some who understand the rationale for the change have concerns.
“My biggest worry in all of this is that employers will take this change in guidance to require employees to come back to work ... before they are ready to, before they feel well enough, and before they are not likely to pose harm to their co-workers,” Nuzzo said.
IS THIS THE FIRST CHANGE FOR COVID-19 ISOLATION GUIDELINES?
No. The CDC originally advised 10 days of isolation, but in late 2021 cut it to five days for Americans who catch the coronavirus and have no symptoms or only brief illnesses. Under that guidance, isolation only ends if a person has been fever-free for at least 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medications and if other symptoms are resolving.
At the time, agency officials said the changes were in keeping with evidence that people with the coronavirus were most infectious in the two days before and three days after symptoms develop.
___
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
veryGood! (5)
Related
- Scoot flight from Singapore to Wuhan turns back after 'technical issue' detected
- The US Rejoins the Paris Agreement, but Rebuilding Credibility on Climate Action Will Take Time
- Chrissy Teigen Believed She Had an Identical Twin After Insane DNA Test Mishap
- In West Texas Where Wind Power Means Jobs, Climate Talk Is Beside the Point
- New Zealand official reverses visa refusal for US conservative influencer Candace Owens
- A Most ‘Sustainable’ Vineyard in a ‘Completely Unsustainable’ Year
- With Only a Week Left in Trump’s Presidency, a Last-Ditch Effort to Block Climate Action and Deny the Science
- Florida police say they broke up drug ring selling fentanyl and xylazine
- Former Syrian official arrested in California who oversaw prison charged with torture
- Florida police say they broke up drug ring selling fentanyl and xylazine
Ranking
- A South Texas lawmaker’s 15
- Abbott Elementary’s Tyler James Williams Addresses Dangerous Sexuality Speculation
- PPP loans cost nearly double what Biden's student debt forgiveness would have. Here's how the programs compare.
- Read full text of the Supreme Court decision on web designer declining to make LGBTQ wedding websites
- Taylor Swift Eras Archive site launches on singer's 35th birthday. What is it?
- New York Mayor Champions Economic Justice in Sustainability Plan
- Melissa Gorga Reveals Bombshell RHONJ Reunion Receipt in Attack on A--hole Teresa Giudice
- Pence meets with Zelenskyy in Ukraine in surprise trip
Recommendation
B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
Travis Scott not criminally liable for Astroworld Festival deaths, grand jury finds
Targeted Ecosystem Restoration Can Protect Climate, Biodiversity
New York Mayor Champions Economic Justice in Sustainability Plan
McConnell absent from Senate on Thursday as he recovers from fall in Capitol
Federal Courts Help Biden Quickly Dismantle Trump’s Climate and Environmental Legacy
Princess Eugenie Gives Birth, Welcomes Baby No. 2 With Husband Jack Brooksbank
Even With a 50-50 Split, a Biden Administration Senate Could Make Big Strides on Climate