CA DEPT. OF PUBLIC HEALTH UPDATED GUIDANCE

by | Jan 7, 2022 | News |

California Department of Public Health’s Modified Recommendations

On Isolation and Quarantine

On December 30, 2021, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) issued updated guidance for the General Public which reduced the amount of time for isolation and/or quarantine based on the person’s vaccination and booster status. The new guidance is mostly aligned with the recently modified CDC recommendations for isolation and quarantine which were updated the last week of December.

The full guidance can be found here.

In light of the ever increasing COVID-19 positive numbers and the fact that the Omicron variant has been determined to be highly transmissible, employers will likely be faced with more and more employees either testing positive for COVID-19 or being a “close contact” with someone who has been infected with the COVID-19 virus. Employers should review and follow these updated recommendations and guidelines.

The following definitions apply to these new recommendations:

Isolation for a COVID-19 positive person: isolation is a separation from those infected with a contagious disease from people who are not infected.

Quarantine for a person exposed to COVID-19: restricting the movement of persons who were exposed to a contagious disease in case they become infected.

Generally, the new guidelines provide:

  • Recommended times to quarantine (staying at home) and wearing a mask for healthy people exposed to those infected reduced from 10 to 5 days;
  • Recommended time for those infected with COVID-19 to isolate at home has been reduced from 10 to 5 days.
  • Infected people should wait for reduced symptoms and have a negative COVID test before leaving isolation
Persons Who Test Positive for COVID-19 (Isolation)
Recommended Action
  • Everyone, regardless of vaccination status, previous infection or lack of symptoms
  •  Stay home (PDF) for at least 5 days.
  • Isolation can end after day 5 if symptoms are not present or are resolving and a diagnostic specimen* collected on day 5 or later tests negative.
  • If unable to test or choosing not to test, and symptoms are not present or are resolving, isolation can end after day 10.
  • If fever is present, isolation should be continued until fever resolves
  • If symptoms, other than fever, are not resolving continue to isolate until symptoms are resolving or until after day 10.
  • Wear a well-fitting mask around others for a total of 10 days, especially in indoor settings (see Section below on masking for additional information)
  •  *Antigen test preferred.
Persons Who are Exposed to Someone with COVID-19 (Quarantine)
Recommended Action
  •  Unvaccinated**; OR
  • Vaccinated and booster-eligible** but have not yet received their booster dose.
  •  **Includes persons previously infected with SARS-CoV-2, including within the last 90 days.
  • (See Appendix for definition of booster-eligible)

 
  • Stay home (PDF) for at least 5 days, after your last contact with a person who has COVID-19.
  • Test on day 5.
  • Quarantine can end after day 5 if symptoms are not present and a diagnostic specimen collected on day 5 or later tests negative.
  • If unable to test or choosing not to test, and symptoms are not present, quarantine can end after day 10.
  • Wear a well-fitting mask around others for a total of 10 days, especially in indoor settings (see Section below on masking for additional information)
  • If testing positive, follow isolation recommendations above.
  • If symptoms develop, test and stay home.
Persons Who are Exposed to Someone with COVID-19 (No Quarantine)
Recommended Action
  • Boosted; OR
  • Vaccinated, but not yet booster-eligible.

(See Appendix for definition of booster-eligible)
  • Test on day 5.
  • Wear a well-fitting mask around others for 10 days, especially in indoor settings (see Section below on masking for additional information)
  • If testing positive, follow isolation recommendations above.
  • If symptoms develop, test and stay home.

Exposed persons, whether quarantined or not:

  • Should consider testing as soon as possible to determine infection status and follow all isolation recommendations above if tested positive. Knowing one is infected early during quarantine enables (a) earlier access to treatment options, if indicated (especially for those that may be at risk for severe illness), and (b) notification of exposed persons (“close contacts”) who may also benefit by knowing if they are infected.
  • If developing symptoms, should also:
  • Self-isolate and test as soon as possible (do not wait until 5 days after exposure to retest if symptoms develop earlier); AND
  • Continue to self-isolate if test result is positive and contact their healthcare provider regarding available treatments and any questions concerning their care.

Self-Monitoring Symptoms:

The CDPH also provides information on how to self-monitor symptoms:

  • Checking temperature twice a day
  • Monitor for fever, cough, shortness of breath, or any other symptoms that can be attributed to COVID-19 for 10 days following last date of exposure, even if self-quarantine is completed earlier.
Reminders of COVID-19 Required Actions for Employers

If an employee tests positive and they have been in the workplace, the employer must notify all persons who were a close contact, and those persons must be permitted to take time off to obtain a test – the employee is to be compensated not only for the travel time expended in obtaining a test, but also for any costs associated with obtaining a COVID-19 test.

In addition, if any employee tests positive for COVID-19 and asserts that the exposure occurred in the workplace, the employee should be provided a DWC-1 Workers Compensation claim form and they can submit a claim for benefits; however, in most instances no workers compensation benefits will be awarded as the employee’s symptoms likely will resolve and not become a compensable disability.

Also, as a reminder, there is no longer any COVID-19 paid sick leave but employees are permitted to use any available Paid Sick Leave under the employer’s paid sick leave policies.

As the guidance issued by the state, local and federal agencies is regularly changing, as is the medical information known about COVID-19, this memo is provided solely as a reference tool to be used for informational purposes and should not be construed or interpreted as providing legal advice related to any specific case or cases.

This Newsletter is intended as a brief summary of employment law. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained herein, it is not intended to serve as “legal advice,” or to establish an attorney-client relationship. If additional information is needed on any of the topics contained herein, please contact our office. All rights reserved. ©2022.

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