CDC Eases Covid Guidelines

[rlk]

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/11/health/virus-cdc-guidelines.html

 

[sam_gordon]

Here's the USA Today article if you don't want to create an account for NYT:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news...-quarantine-guidelines-screening/10301210002/

Highlights (IMO):

dropping recommendations that Americans who are not up-to-date on vaccines quarantine themselves if they come into close contact with an infected person.

The agency continues to say people who test positive should isolate from others for at least five days, regardless of whether they were vaccinated.

Under the new guidelines, people who tested positive and have stopped isolation after five days can also stop masking as early as eight days after first testing positive, depending on symptoms.

the end of the recommendation that schools do routine daily testing, although that practice can be reinstated in certain situations during a surge in infections, officials said.

The CDC also dropped a "test-to-stay" recommendation, which said students exposed to COVID-19 could regularly test – instead of quarantining at home – to keep attending school. With no quarantine recommendation anymore, the testing option disappeared too.

Masks continue to be recommended only in areas where community transmission is deemed high, or if a person is considered at high risk of severe illness.

 

[easyas123]

Time to re-write my protocol again I guess.
Sounds like this was in part due to herd immunity being reached, if I understood the brief news story I caught about it. I will need to sit down and read the new recommendations completely and go from there.

Thanks for posting -

 

[KayMichigan]

We haven't reached herd immunity. We're at roughly the same number of daily cases as we were at last September. I think the common belief now is that herd immunity for COVID is impossible due to the number of variants and the fact that people can become infected over and over.

However, we do have the vaccines now and more treatments like Paxlovid, so the CDC probably figures it's easier to handle COVID now when people get infected.

 

[Dan Murphy]

We're at roughly the same number of daily cases as we were at last September.

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries

A bit over 96,000 new cases reported yesterday. Runs about 100,000 a day. 429 deaths yesterday.

 

[RamblingMad]

Get ready for a ridiculously bad flu season as people go wild.

 

[ShirikiUtundu]

These guidelines don't feel new/updated, considering the recommendations weren't in place (or removed well before now) most places.

 

[Wakey]

I would imagine most people who get covid now, and most now suffer mild cold like symptoms, have been just carrying on as normal anyway.

 

[Disneychick13]

More highlights (IMO): *although I encourage you to read the whole CDC release

These are direct quotes:
“Receipt of a primary series alone, in the absence of being up to date with vaccination* through receipt of all recommended booster doses, provides minimal protection against infection and transmission”

”CDC’s COVID-19 prevention recommendations no longer differentiate based on a person’s vaccination status because breakthrough infections occur, though they are generally mild (16), and persons who have had COVID-19 but are not vaccinated have some degree of protection against severe illness from their previous infection”

 

[MamaMermaid]

They need people to get back to work... I guess the economy matters more than health.

 

[ShirikiUtundu]

More highlights (IMO): *although I encourage you to read the whole CDC release

These are direct quotes:
“Receipt of a primary series alone, in the absence of being up to date with vaccination* through receipt of all recommended booster doses, provides minimal protection against infection and transmission”

”CDC’s COVID-19 prevention recommendations no longer differentiate based on a person’s vaccination status because breakthrough infections occur, though they are generally mild (16), and persons who have had COVID-19 but are not vaccinated have some degree of protection against severe illness from their previous infection”

I wouldn't consider those "highlights," especially with missing context. The sections that contain these two quotes are just about reiterating the same stuff they've been saying the whole time:

Get boosted

and

Wearing a mask when community levels are high is helpful

 

[Christine]

I read it a few times and, honestly, I just didn't see much change except for relaxing a little guidance for unvaccinated individuals.

 

[Allison]

Get ready for a ridiculously bad flu season as people go wild.

I'm curious what you mean by go wild. What are people going to do that they aren't doing already?

 

[RamblingMad]

I'm curious what you mean by go wild. What are people going to do that they aren't doing already?

We went from everyone locked down and wearing masks to everyone pretty much back to normal. Flu season was almost nonexistent last year. I'm expecting more of a return to normal plus the impact of no exposure to the flu last year other than shots. It's going to be bad. And I don't think it's really on anyone's radar right now.

 

[TLSnell1981]

We went from everyone locked down and wearing masks to everyone pretty much back to normal. Flu season was almost nonexistent last year. I'm expecting more of a return to normal plus the impact of no exposure to the flu last year other than shots. It's going to be bad. And I don't think it's really on anyone's radar right now.

We get flu shots every year. No flu or COVID with or without masks and traveled to Boston, Bahamas (2), WDW (lost count), France and Germany.

 

[Sinder]

Sure shorten the isolation time the week after I had to isolate. I felt bad for 3 days then it was like a switch. I was still testing positive but I had zero symptoms by day 4. I stayed isolated an extra day for dh’s sake but I think he’s got some weird super immunity. He had exposure from 3 of us, and close exposure too and he never got a booster. He never ended up getting it and had to take off a bunch of work. Hopefully with this change his company will drop required stay at home if you’ve been exposed BS

 

[Disneychick13]

I don’t think the isolation recommendations changed. It had been 5 days isolation and then an additional 5 days with a mask if going out in public. The only difference was that you could test out of the masking by testing negative on antigen tests 48 hrs apart After the 5 day isolation. So I guess that could shorten the masking period from 10 to 8 days if you tested negative on days 6 and 8?

 

[leahgoogle]

We went from everyone locked down and wearing masks to everyone pretty much back to normal. Flu season was almost nonexistent last year. I'm expecting more of a return to normal plus the impact of no exposure to the flu last year other than shots. It's going to be bad. And I don't think it's really on anyone's radar right now.

We did have a lot of flu in our area last year. I thought of last year being that re-exposure year. However, in our area, we have been business as usual since the beginning of 2021 pretty much. So, in some areas, your theory will probably be true.

 

[Sinder]

I don’t think the isolation recommendations changed. It had been 5 days isolation and then an additional 5 days with a mask if going out in public. The only difference was that you could test out of the masking by testing negative on antigen tests 48 hrs apart After the 5 day isolation. So I guess that could shorten the masking period from 10 to 8 days if you tested negative on days 6 and 8?

This is from the USA Today article. I read that to say if you have it but have no symptoms you don't have to continue to isolate for 5 days. The statement below does not mention masks, it only mentions isolation.
The nation's top public health agency also said people who do test positive for the virus but show no symptoms or see symptoms improve quickly can isolate for a shorter period.

It's no wonder people disregard what the CDC says anymore. The article goes on to say isolate for at least 5 days.

The agency continues to say people who test positive should isolate from others for at least five days, regardless of whether they were vaccinated.
"If anyone tests positive or is diagnosed with COVID-19, they should isolate for at least five days, at the minimum five days," Massetti said. "On Day 6, or later, when they are fever-free for 24 hours and their other symptoms have improved, they can end isolation and wear a mask indoors at home and in public."


It's been recommended for 5 days for awhile so what exactly does the bolded even mean if nothing has changed about isolation. The bolded statements contradict themselves.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I don’t think the isolation recommendations changed. It had been 5 days isolation and then an additional 5 days with a mask if going out in public. The only difference was that you could test out of the masking by testing negative on antigen tests 48 hrs apart After the 5 day isolation. So I guess that could shorten the masking period from 10 to 8 days if you tested negative on days 6 and 8?

They still advise wearing a mask for those additional 5 days and suggest testing on the 5th day. Testing negative especially twice is more on a confidence level you are less likely to spread it but wearing a mask around others (not just in public but around those in your household most especially if there were concerns of immunocomprised/higher risk) and avoiding travel ups that confidence.

We're in this boat right now, my husband tested negative day 5 and day 6 but is still largely isolating in the room he was in and is still wearing a mask around me. 10 days is end of 8/14. He's opted to work from home beyond the 5 days. If he had to go into the office he'd be wearing a mask.