Exposed to COVID-19? Quarantine for the full 14 days, even if a contact tracing app says otherwise
LANSING — Don't be confused: If you were exposed to COVID-19, you should quarantine for 14 days, not 10.
That's the latest message from the Mid-Michigan District Health Department, which sent a release Thursday clarifying the latest state quarantine guidance, which says people should quarantine for a full two weeks after they are exposed to COVID-19.
Traceforce, a contact tracing platform used by MMDHD and other local health departments, hasn't kept up with the change in guidance. Until Thursday, it had continued to recommend the former 10-day time period instead of the full 14.
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"If you were identified as a close contact [of someone with COVID-19] on or after April 5, you do need to quarantine for 14 days, even if you received a letter from Traceforce stating otherwise," the MMDHD release says.
Quarantining helps prevent COVID-19 from spreading. To quarantine, a person should stay home and away from others, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, which also recommends two-week quarantines.
People should quarantine if they have been in close contact with someone who has COVID-19 unless they are fully vaccinated (which means they had their final shot at least two weeks before the exposure date) or if they have been infected with COVID-19 within the last 90 days.
Don't cut it short. Having antibodies or a negative COVID-19 test result during quarantine does not shorten the quarantine, MMDHD said.
"The health department would also like to point out that the length of quarantine and release from quarantine is determined by public health, not ones' health care provider," the release states.
COVID-19 cases are exploding locally, as Michigan remains the worst state in the nation in this season of the pandemic.