What to know about CDC’s updated COVID-19 guidelines – 13newsnow.com WVEC

The updated recommendation is now similar to that of the flu and other respiratory illnesses.

NORFOLK, Va. People who test positive for COVID-19 no longer need to stay in isolation for five days.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)announced Fridayits doing away with that guidance.

The health agency now recommends people who test positive stay home until symptoms are mild and improving and they've gone at least 24 hours without a fever. However, the change does not apply to nursing homes and health care facilities.

"Whether it's an exact five days or not, it's just important to stay home if you're sick," said Karen McGoldrick, a clinical infection preventionist at Sentara Leigh Hospital.

McGoldrick said the change comes now that most people have some degree of immunity to the virus.

"For the most part, most people aren't as severely ill as they were, say, two years ago when it was at the height," she explained.

McGoldrick said it's likely many weren't following the isolation guidance anyway.

"Just like anything else, just because somebody gives guidelines, doesn't mean everybody followed it," McGoldrick said. "I don't know that everyone truly was isolating at home for five days. We hope they were."

The CDC's COVID-19 recommendations are now similar to that of the flu and other respiratory illnesses. The health agency calls it a"unified approach."

Still, health experts urge caution.

"One thing that's different about [COVID-19], it seems to be a little bit more serious of an illness than the flu in a lot of cases, and there's a lot more complications after COVID...than with the flu," McGoldrick said.

The CDC still recommends people get vaccinated and wash their hands to prevent getting infected in the first place.

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What to know about CDC's updated COVID-19 guidelines - 13newsnow.com WVEC