CDC Drops Its 5-Day COVID Isolation Guideline—How That Impacts Your Family

The CDC announced a change to its COVID-19 isolation guidelines. Here's what experts say.

Fact checked by Sarah Scott

COVID-19 isolation guidelines went from 10 days to five in 2021. Now, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced new guidelines for isolation that puts COVID-19 in line with other respiratory viruses.

That means if a person tests positive for COVID, they will no longer have to isolate and stay home for five days. They should stay home and away from others when they get sick, but can return to normal activities when their symptoms are improving and there is no fever without the use of fever-reducing medication for at least 24 hours.

"CDC is making updates to the recommendations now because the U.S. is seeing far fewer hospitalizations and deaths associated with COVID-19 and because we have more tools than ever to combat flu, COVID, and RSV," a CDC says in a media release.

The CDC, however, is still emphasizing prevention by recommending that people focus on cleaner air, hygiene practices, keeping a distance from others, wearing a mask, and getting tested as they resume normal activities. This is especially important to protect people at risk for severe illness, such as those with weakened immune systems and those 65 and older.

This move is similar to guidelines California already put out in January of this year, following Oregon in May 2023.

Some experts are concerned about the loosened guidelines, while others are more understanding of the change. They do agree on one thing: it could expose more people to COVID and parents should still keep common sense safety measures in mind.

What the New COVID Isolation Guidelines Mean

The reality is, this can make things tricky.

First, the evidence on transmission of COVID has not changed, says Jessica Malaty Rivera, MS, an infectious disease epidemiologist and senior science communication advisor at the de Beaumont Foundation. Telling people a five-day isolation isn't needed isn't a smart move, she adds.

"The goals of public health guidance is to reduce harm; it's to give people the best amount of information to make the most informed choices for themselves and their community," she says. "And this is not that."

Rivera points out that COVID is still spreading and people are typically infectious for longer than five days on average.

Not all people have followed isolation guidelines to begin with. A 2024 study found that 5% of participants hid a COVID-19 infection so they wouldn’t miss work, travel, or a social event. But that's not reason enough to change guidelines, says Rivera.

For Scott Roberts, MD, assistant professor and associate medical director of infection prevention at Yale School of Medicine, "It is a more practical approach to align this with influenza and RSV."

That can lead to more people contracting COVID-19. "While this will significantly ease the social disruptions when a child tests positive, I do worry children with COVID who are feeling better, but still contagious, will return to school and risk exposing others," he says.

The safer approach, adds Dr. Roberts, is to have a five-day isolation, followed by wearing a mask for five days. "However, some schools and kids will be unable to logistically maintain this," he says.

What Can Concerned Parents Do?

Even though the CDC changed its guidelines, it's still up to each state to enforce isolation and quarantine rules. In turn, those can vary from state to state. The bottom line is that parents should do their best to keep their children home from school when they are sick.

"When COVID hit our home, the rule that we had for our kids was they weren't going to go back unless they were testing negative," says Rivera, a mom of three. "And if they were symptomatic, we were not going to send them either."

The same rules, she says, apply to any other respiratory virus, including the flu. In cases where a cough can linger for weeks, Rivera knows it's impractical to keep children home for that long. That's when wearing a mask can be helpful to prevent a spread.

Of course, not every family can keep their kids home from school every time they get sick, as not every parent has the ability to just take off of work and child care may not be available. Again, wearing a mask in those cases can be effective.

Schools should also continue to send a message of safety, says Dr. Roberts, adding parents should check with their child's school on return policies after illness.

Rivera says it also doesn't hurt to speak with your child's school to discuss strategies. "Work with your school and your teachers to provide some flexibility and see if there can be some compromise on how to protect the weakest and the most vulnerable among them," she says.

Families should additionally continue to follow proven strategies to prevent contracting illnesses, especially if their child is immunocompromised. "The tried and true strategies still work against COVID," says Dr. Roberts. Those include hand-washing, good ventilation, and avoiding others who are sick.

Plus, experts agree vaccination remains the best way to reduce severe COVID infection, as well as long COVID, which a new report found can also cause persistent symptoms in children. However, COVID-19 vaccination rates are lagging.

"We now have data showing the updated vaccine this year is effective against getting infected to begin with, in addition to helping make what would be severe cases more mild," says Dr. Roberts. "I recommend the COVID vaccine for anyone eligible."

Bottom line: minimizing the spread is still critical, according to Rivera.

“We need to continue to prioritize reducing infections,” she says. “This virus is here to stay; it will be with us for the rest of our lives, truly.”

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