Ohio guidance will align with CDC on COVID instructions

Ohio will align its recommendations with the new guidelines from the federal Centers for Disease Control when it comes to COVID-19 isolation and quarantine timelines.

The Ohio Department of Health issued a statement and flow chart late Thursday describing the new guidelines, which call for shorter quarantine and isolation times, depending on vaccination status and symptoms.

The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week changed its recommendations for isolation and quarantine for COVID-19, saying that science shows most of the virus transmission happens in the one to two days before symptoms appear and the first two to three days after.

The CDC’S new isolation recommendations for those who test positive for COVID-19 are:

● If asymptomatic after five days, they can leave isolation and then wear a mask for another five days.

● If they still have a fever after five days, they should continue isolation until the fever goes away.

The CDC’S new quarantine recommendations for those exposed to COVID-19 are:

● Unvaccinated people or those who are more than six months out from their last shot and not yet boosted, quarantine for five days and then follow strict mask use for an additional five days.

● People who have received a booster shot do not need to quarantine following an exposure but should wear a mask for 10 days.

● Everyone exposed should get a COVID-19 test five days after exposure.

“Evidence shows that the majority of COVID-19 transmission occurs early in the course of illness, generally in the one to two days prior to symptom onset, and in the two to three days after symptoms begin,” said Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff. “The CDC’S updated quarantine and isolation guidance takes the latest science and evidence into consideration, with a focus on testing, masking, and symptom monitoring – similar to Ohio’s reduced quarantine guidelines in the state’s ‘mask to stay’ and ‘test to play’ guidance.”

Laura Bischoff is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.