politicnewsbusterinsiderpostreview: The CDC's COVID quarantine revision: practical or pathetic?

Tuesday, 28 December 2021

The CDC's COVID quarantine revision: practical or pathetic?

December 28, 2021

Infected with COVID? Your CDC-ordained isolation period may have just been cut in half.

Until yesterday, people who tested positive for COVID were advised to isolate for 10 days before returning to normal life. Now, the recommended isolation period is just five days for asymptomatic people, to be followed by five days of strict mask usage.

Why the sudden change? The CDC says it's "motivated by science demonstrating that the majority of SARS-CoV-2 transmission occurs early in the course of illness, generally in the 1-2 days prior to onset of symptoms and the 2-3 days after." On CNN, Dr. Fauci had a more pragmatic explanation: "If you are asymptomatic and you are infected, we want to get people back to the jobs, particularly those with essential jobs, to keep our society running smoothly."

Reactions, unsurprisingly, have been mixed. Some—okay, many—critics view the change as a blatant concession to corporations who want to keep their employees working as much as possible in the face of illness. And there may be some truth to the suspicion that the shortened isolation period was motivated in part by the overwhelming flight cancellations that happened around Christmas after too many airline crew members got sick—and by a letter from the CEO of Delta requesting a cut to isolation times.

But—and I say this at the risk of underestimating corporate greed—it's crucial to note that the CDC guidance applies only to people who are not showing symptoms at the end of the five-day isolation period. Still have a cough? Stay home.

Part of me selfishly sees the change as a good thing: If I'm feeling fine by day five, why would I want to stay cooped up inside? But I admit that the dizzying series of reversals from the CDC hasn't inspired much confidence in our public health system, for Republicans or Democrats. As the likely milder but more infectious Omicron variant spreads, all I can advise is for you to get vaxxed and boosted and keep on keeping on.

—Abigail Weinberg

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