Chasing Life

With more than 750,000 Americans being diagnosed with Covid-19 every day, the need for clear guidance on isolation and quarantine is critically important. Sadly, the CDC’s guidance is continuously changing, confusing and at times contradictory.

 

Dr. Gerald Harmon, president of the American Medical Association, said in a statement last week that the agency's latest guidance threatens to allow the virus to spread further, putting patients and the health care system at risk.

 

The most recent CDC recommendations also highlight a persistent problem throughout the pandemic: a lack of available testing and a fundamental misunderstanding of how these tests are designed to work.

 

So what should you do? In a new essay for CNN.com, I suggest a simple and effective strategy that relies on both testing and clinical symptoms, distinguishes between those who are vaccinated and those who are not, and still allows for a rapid return to normal life if you're well.

 

The bottom line: If you have Covid-19, it's worth decreasing the risk of spreading it by really thinking about how you're going to come out of isolation. I support a strategy that considers your symptoms, your vaccination status, testing and the best data on your contagiousness at any given time.

 

I am confident that 2022 will be a year of promise and renewal and that we will get through this together. While Covid-19 is likely here to stay, these simple strategies can help accelerate the end of the pandemic.