The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) recent guidelines to cut the isolation and quarantine period in half have raised questions among experts and caused concern among the general public in the US.
As omicron, the variant notorious for its rapid contagiousness, pervades and triggers new spikes in the number of cases worldwide, the CDC guidelines have been met with strong criticism and disagreement for recommending shorter isolation and allowing it to end without the requirement of a negative PCR test.
The unexpected changes in isolation and quarantine periods, amid recent spikes in cases due to the omicron variant, raised doubts about whether the CDC was caving in to the pressures of major sectors and profit-driven laypeople affected by the pandemic's negative impact on the workforce.
Concerns have also been raised about the health care sector, as health professionals may be required to return to work before fully recovering from COVID-19, leading to the spread of the virus and, as a result, a reduction in the number of health care workers available in hospitals.
Meanwhile, experts point out that there is not enough research involving the omicron form to back up CDC2's decision.
The CDC reduced the recommended COVID-19 isolation period from 10 days to five days on Monday, followed by another five days of wearing a mask around others for asymptomatic patients.
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