Confused by CDC COVID Changes? Simply Stated: Hold the Line

TAG's Q&A: It seems that CDC has been going back and forth on its COVID-19 recommendations – particularly in close contact definitions and testing. So has anything really changed in all this?

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A. The short answer: No, nothing substantive has changed. Close contacts are still considered to be those who have been within six feet, for at least 15 minutes, of a person who has tested positive for COVID-19, and these persons should be tested as well.

In most cases, it is recommended that the close contacts be quarantined and tested within the first 48 hours to enable identification of other close contacts. However, as relayed in CDC’s testing guidance and testing strategy diagram, in some cases workers in high‐density critical infrastructure workplaces may be permitted to work after a COVID‐19 case is identified if they are asymptomatic after a potential exposure and as long as worker infection prevention recommendations and controls are implemented. 

So, if an asymptomatic close contact(s) continues to work:

• Baseline testing and testing every three days after that can help reduce risk. Be ready to contact trace if you find a positive.

• Worker protections need to include the same mitigation strategies that have been advocated since early in the pandemic:

  • Wellness testing for all persons entering the facility

  • Six-foot separation of workers

  • Increased handwashing

  • Masks, covering the nose and mouth, required for all

  • Enhanced sanitation of surfaces

 

COVID-19 testing and contact tracing can be complex issues. TAG has been assisting companies with their pandemic protections since early March. Give us a call to help you too!