As coronavirus cases increase markedly this week, Lyon County Public Health has rolled out a new online fact sheet to answer questions about current quarantine and isolation policies.
Public Health has stressed quarantine is for people who are well but are close contacts, meaning within six feet of an infected person for at least 10 straight minutes in a 24-hour period. Fully-vaccinated people do not need to quarantine after close contact unless they start symptoms.
Isolation, however, is for people who either have coronavirus symptoms or are awaiting test results. Besides separating themselves from family or work, Isolation patients should use separate bathrooms and bedrooms. Isolation can last for 10 days from the start of symptoms or 72 hours after being fever-free without medication help and other symptoms have improved, whichever is longer.
The fact sheet details five scenarios:
*If a healthy person is in close contact with an infected person, the healthy person needs to quarantine for 14 days after the last contact even if the healthy person does not develop symptoms.
*If a person develops symptoms, including a fever and cough for 10 days, that person needs to isolate for the 10 days from when symptoms began as well as another three days fever-free without medication.
*If a person gets sick and develops a fever but the high temperature goes away well before the 10-day isolation period ends, the person still has has to isolate for 10 days.
*If a person is a close contact, quarantines, gets tested after five days — even though that person never felt sick — and tests positive, the positive test result date starts the isolation period because that person is asymptomatic.
*If a child was exposed to COVID-19 at school, quarantines and begins to show symptoms during the quarantine period, isolation then begins on the day the child develops symptoms. The child’s parents then must quarantine as they care for the child — and continue quarantine for 14 days after the child is released from isolation, even with a negative COVID test.
Residents with questions can call the COVID-19 Hotline at 620-208-3741. Click here for the full information sheet.
