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WASHINGTON: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is prepared to shorten the recommended duration of quarantine after exposure to someone who is positive for COVID-19, as the virus spreads across the country.
According to a senior administration official, the new guidelines, to be released on Tuesday (December 1) evening, will allow people who have come into contact with someone infected with the virus to resume normal activity after 10 days, or 7 days if they receive a negative result.
That’s below the recommended 14-day period from the start of the pandemic.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to preview the announcement, said the policy change has been debated for some time as scientists have studied the incubation period of the virus.
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The policy would speed up the return to normal activities of those considered “close contacts” of those infected with the virus, which has infected more than 13.5 million Americans and killed at least 270,000.
While the CDC had said that the incubation period for the virus was thought to extend to 14 days, most people became infectious and developed symptoms between 4 and 5 days after exposure.
It is not the first time the CDC has adjusted its guidance for the novel coronavirus as it adjusts to new research. In July, the agency shortened its advice on how long a person should remain in isolation after experiencing COVID-19 symptoms for the first time from 14 days to 10, provided they are no longer ill.
The new guidance was presented Tuesday at a meeting of the White House coronavirus task force for final approval.
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