CDC says COVID-19 quarantine can end after 10 days, or 7 days with negative test
In new guidance, the CDC said people exposed to COVID-19 who are asymptomatic can quarantine for 10 days instead of 14, and for 7 days if they receive a negative test result.
Previous guidance said all people exposed to an infected person should quarantine for 14 days.
Henry Walke, MD, MPH, director of CDC’s Division of Preparedness and Emerging Infections, said the goal of the new guidance is to increase compliance with quarantine protocols and potentially alleviate the economic burden on those who cannot meet the 14-day quarantine period.
The CDC also advised against any holiday travel. However, for those who do decide to travel, the agency recommended travelers receive a COVID-19 test 1 to 3 days before and 3 to 5 days upon returning from travel.
“Testing does not eliminate all risk, but when combined with reducing nonessential activities, symptom screening and continuing with precautions like wearing masks, social distancing and hand-washing, it can make travel safer,” Walke said during a press teleconference.
“We continue to encourage all Americans to wear a mask, maintain social distance, stay 6 feet apart from people who don't live with you, avoid crowds and indoor spaces and wash your hands often,” Walke said. “Even as vaccines become available, taking these protective actions is critical until COVID-19 vaccination becomes widely adopted.”
The United States has surpassed 13.7 million cases and 272,000 deaths from COVID-19, according to tracking by Johns Hopkins University.
“Cases are rising, and the safest thing to do is to postpone holiday travel and stay home,” said Cindy Friedman, MD, chief of the CDC’s Travelers’ Health Branch. “Travel volume was high over Thanksgiving, and even if only a small percentage of those travelers were asymptomatically infected, this can translate into hundreds of thousands of additional infections moving from one community to another.”
John T. Brooks, MD, chief medical officer for the CDC’s COVID-19 response, said the quarantine revision came in response to data that showed a risk of 1% with an upper limit of 12% for the 10-day quarantine period, and 5% with an upper limit of 10% for a 7-day quarantine period with a negative test result.
The new guidance came in the wake of a 13-1 vote by the CDC’S Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to prioritize health care workers and residents of long-term care facilities to receive a COVID-19 vaccine when one is authorized.
“We're all very concerned about the rise in hospitalizations across the country,” Walke said. “We want to prevent these hospitalizations as best we can, and one of the best ways to prevent hospital strain is for people to keep from becoming infected in the first place.”
References:
CDC. When to quarantine. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/if-you-are-sick/quarantine.html. Accessed December 2, 2020.
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Press Conference