New York: Worried that the new Covid-19 wave can beat US hospitals who lack staff, federal officials on Thursday loosen rules calling for health care workers so they do not work for 10 days if they test positive.
The worker will now be allowed to return to work after seven days if they test negatively and have no symptoms.
The isolation time can be cut for up to five days, or even less, if there are severe staff shortages, according to new centers for disease control and prevention guidance.
“When the health care community prepares an anticipated patient surge because Omicron, the CDC renews our recommendations to reflect what we know about infection and exposure in the context of vaccination and booster doses,” said the CDC Director in a statement.
“Our goal is to maintain health care personnel and patients safely, and to overcome and prevent undue loads in our health facilities,” he added.
Insulation is designed to keep the infected person from uninfected people, to prevent the spread of further viruses.
CDC officials have suggested that in calculating the 10-day isolation period, the first day must be the first full day after the symptoms are developed or after a positive test.
If someone develops symptoms a few moments after the positive Covid-19 test, the quarantine period must restart, starting one day after the symptoms develop.