This guidance acknowledges that the pandemic is not over, but also helps us move to a point where
COVID-19 no longer severely disrupts our daily lives.
In support of this update the CDC is:
• Continuing to promote the importance of being up to date with vaccination to protect people
against serious illness, hospitalization, and death. Protection provided by the current vaccine
against symptomatic infection and transmission is less than that against severe disease and
diminishes over time, especially against the currently circulating variants. For this reason, it is
important to stay up to date, especially as new vaccines become available.
• Updating its guidance for people who are not up to date on COVID-19 vaccines on what to do
if exposed to someone with COVID-19. This is consistent with the existing guidance for people
who are up to date on COVID-19 vaccines.
• Recommending that instead of quarantining if you were exposed to COVID-19, you wear a
high-quality mask for 10 days and get tested on day 5.
• Reiterating that regardless of vaccination status, you should isolate from others when you
have COVID-19.
o You should also isolate if you are sick and suspect that you have COVID-19 but do not
yet have test results.
▪ If your results are positive, follow CDC’s full isolation recommendations.
▪ If your results are negative, you can end your isolation.
• Recommending that if you test positive for COVID-19, you stay home for at least 5 days and
isolate from others in your home. You are likely most infectious during these first 5 days.
Wear a high-quality mask when you must be around others at home and in public.
o If after 5 days you are fever-free for 24 hours without the use of medication, and your
symptoms are improving, or you never had symptoms, you may end isolation period.