Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Healthcare Personnel During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic
CDC’s COVID-19 Community Levels recommendations do not apply in healthcare settings, such as hospitals and nursing homes. Instead, healthcare settings should continue to use community transmission rates and continue to follow CDC’s infection prevention and control recommendations for healthcare settings.
For healthcare personnel, see Isolation and work restriction guidance. For strategies to mitigate healthcare personnel staffing shortages, see Contingency and crisis management. For healthcare professionals advising people in non-healthcare settings about isolation for laboratory-confirmed COVID-19, see Ending Isolation and Precautions for People with COVID-19.
Summary of Recent Changes
Updates as of February 2, 2022
Due to concerns about increased transmissibility of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, this guidance is being updated to enhance protection for healthcare personnel, patients, and visitors and to address concerns about potential impacts on the healthcare system given a surge in SARS-CoV-2 infections. These updates will be refined as additional information becomes available to inform recommended actions.
Empiric use of Transmission-Based Precautions (quarantine) is recommended for patients who have had close contact with someone with SARS-CoV-2 infection if they are not up to date with all recommended COVID-19 vaccine doses.
In general, quarantine is not needed for asymptomatic patients who are up to date with all recommended COVID-19 vaccine doses or who have recovered from SARS-CoV-2 infection in the prior 90 days; potential exceptions are described in the guidance. However, some of these patients should still be tested as described in the testing section of the guidance.
A test-based strategy and (if available) consultation with infectious disease experts is now recommended for determining the duration of Transmission-Based Precautions for patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection who are moderately to severely immunocompromised.
Included additional examples when universal respirator use could be considered
Additional updates that will have implications for healthcare facilities were made in the following guidance documents:
This interim guidance has been updated based on currently available information about COVID-19 and the current situation in the United States.
This guidance is applicable to all U.S. settings where healthcare is delivered (including home health). This guidance is not intended for non-healthcare settings (e.g., restaurants) and not for persons outside of healthcare settings. CDC’s main landing page for COVID-19 content will help readers navigate to information regarding modes of transmission, clinical management, laboratory settings, COVID-19 vaccines and CDC guidance on other COVID-19-related topics.
Employers should be aware that other local, territorial, tribal, state, and federal requirements may apply, including those promulgated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
To learn more, please visit: Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations for Healthcare Personnel During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic