“Fully vaccinated persons who meet criteria will no longer be required to quarantine following an exposure to someone with COVID-19,” the CDC said in updates to its web page with guidance on vaccination. This does not mean they should stop taking precautions.
Specifically, this means that 14 days after the final vaccination dose, and for three months after that dose, people who show no symptoms would not need to quarantine if exposed to someone with COVID-19, per USA Today.
The CDC points out that the timeframe could be extended as more is learned about the long-term impact of the vaccines. The CDC points out that the risk of transmission from vaccinated people is still uncertain, but being vaccinated has been shown to prevent symptomatic COVID-19.
“Individual and societal benefits of avoiding unnecessary quarantine may outweigh the potential but unknown risk of transmission,” the CDC said.
The criteria that must be met
“Vaccinated persons with an exposure to someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 are not required to quarantine if they meet all of the following criteria,” the CDC added.
1. Are fully vaccinated (i.e., ≥2 weeks following receipt of the second dose in a 2-dose series, or ≥2 weeks following receipt of one dose of a single-dose vaccine)
2. Are within 3 months following receipt of the last dose in the series
3. Have remained asymptomatic since the current COVID-19 exposure
“This recommendation to waive quarantine for people with vaccine-derived immunity aligns with quarantine recommendations for those with natural immunity, which eases implementation,” the CDC said, per CNN News. The agency will update guidance as more is learned.
