In response to an increase in omicron cases across the country, the CDC reduced the recommended isolation time for persons with COVID-19 from 10 days to five days on Monday.
Infected people can now isolate for just five days, followed by wearing of mask around other people for another five days.
Because of omicron cases, many industries, particularly major airlines during the holiday season, are experiencing severe workforce shortages. Hundreds of flights have been delayed or canceled around the country during the Christmas travel season, according to many carriers.
Individuals whose symptoms are improving may leave their homes after five days if their symptoms are clearing, according to the CDC. People who have a fever should stay at home until it goes away, it added.
The decision was based on scientific evidence showing the majority of SARS-CoV-2 transmission occurs early in the disease, often 1-2 days prior to the development of symptoms and 2-3 days afterward. People who test positive should isolate for five days and then leave if they are asymptomatic at that time and can continue to mask for another five days to reduce the risk of infecting others.
The CDC now recommends quarantine for five days followed by strict mask use for another five days for persons who are unvaccinated or are more than six months out from their second mRNA dosage (or more than two months after the J&J vaccination) and have not yet been boosted.
Without a five-day quarantine, a person who has been exposed must maintain proper wearing of mask at all times when around other people especially during the first 10 days after being exposed.
Those who have been vaccinated and boosted are usually exempt from quarantine, according to the CDC.
Two doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are only around 35% effective against Omicron, but a booster dose raises its effect to 75%, the CDC says on its website.
The Omicron variant, discovered in South Africa last month, is swiftly spreading in the U.S. It accounted for 73.2%of all new cases in the week ending Dec. 18.
The CDC's new guidance comes less than a week after the government relaxed guidelines for positive health care workers, reducing the isolation period from 10 days to as little as five days if there are staffing constraints.
People who had been exposed to COVID-19 but had not tested positive were previously recommended to quarantine for 14 days, while those who tested positive for COVID-19 were told to isolate for 10 days.
The CDC emphasized that everyone who is eligible for a vaccine should get it.
