CDC quarantine guidelines for exposure to COVID are difficult to follow for some families, according to a Boise family. But more preventative measures are available.
BOISE, Idaho — The Center for Disease and Control currently recommends anyone exposed to COVID who is not fully vaccinated stay home for at least five days.
Anyone testing positive or showing symptoms should isolate; in a family setting this would mean keeping the sick individuals in their own separate room. The CDC further asks anyone in the household to, “wear a well-fitted mask for 10 full days any time you are around others inside your home or in public,” according to the CDC website.
That is easier said than done for Brain Rich and his Boise family. After daycare and travel exposed members of his family to the virus, a positive test plunged them into quarantine.
“We don’t have a big enough house [to isolate],” Rich said. “With a 4-year-old, frankly, it’s kinda silly to think we’re all gonna run around masked and sleep in masks or something like that. Omicron specifically has proven to be so incredibly contagious we had no illusion we could dodge it.”
Rich’s family treated quarantine as if they all had the virus, or at least were going to get it, however, only half of the family got sick.
Even without sufficient space to fully isolate or certain members unable to frequently wear a mask, more preventative options are available according to Central District Health.
“Just because you live in the same home, doesn’t mean you have to see spread,” CDH Communicable Disease Control Program Manager Lindsay Haskell said. “You can increase ventilation in your home. Have windows and doors open. I know it’s really cold this time of year so that’s more challenging, but even things like having fan running or your exhaust fans in bathrooms, laundry rooms can help circulate that air.”
The virus is less likely to spread on surfaces but disinfecting common use areas like the bathroom and kitchen can help, Haskell said.
Haskell urges anyone in question to use the CDH COVID-19 Calculator to understand the proper quarantine and isolation timeframe after exposure, close contact, or a positive test.
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