CDC Updates COVID-19 Guidance

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its COVID-19 community and school guidance on Thursday. The guidance states that people who are exposed to the virus no longer need to quarantine at home, regardless of their vaccination status, although they should wear a mask for 10 days and get tested for the virus on day 5. The guidance also no longer recommends staying at least 6 feet away from other people to reduce the risk of exposure.

“We know that Covid-19 is here to stay,” Greta Massetti, a C.D.C. epidemiologist, said. “High levels of population immunity due to vaccination and previous infection, and the many tools that we have available to protect people from severe illness and death, have put us in a different place.”

The agency’s new guidance builds on previous recommendations issued in February, when the agency shortened isolation times for many Americans.