The CDC has put in place a new, poor isolation policy, which is a "pan-respiratory guidance" that combines guidance for COVID-19, influenza, and RSV despite the continued increased impact of COVID-19. The new policy says that symptomatic people should isolate until fever-free for 24 hours and other symptoms are improving and then one can "go back to your normal activities," and it does not require asymptomatic people to isolate at all. This is based on Oregon's bad isolation policy from last May that was most likely put in place so students didn't have to stay home for five days, and California put the policy in place in January. The CDC Director has suggested that "the folks who are more vulnerable were top of mind when we did this," which is not the case.

The CDC has said that Oregon and California haven't seen a disproportionate increase from their policies; however, data collection has been largely dismantled, and the Oregon change was made quietly - a recent article from February found that 4 out of 5 of Oregonians asked didn't know about Oregon's isolation policy change, so it's not something that was regularly being practiced. California's change was made at the height of the winter respiratory season, when numbers will naturally be decreasing.

Furthermore, the CDC's new policy change does NOT require or even strongly recommend COVID-positive people no longer in isolation to wear a mask, and it shortens the potential length of time people leaving isolation may take precautions. The CDC says to "take added precaution" for five days after leaving isolation; these are presented as an either/or list, and masking is the third item mentioned, behind hygiene (which includes handwashing, which not very protective against COVID-19).

These policies are dangerous, anti-science, anti-public health, and discriminatory. COVID-19 continues to strongly impact people, and there is no lasting immunity. Public health experts have said that fever is not a good measure of infectiousness, and many people with COVID-19 do not develop a fever. Most people remain infectious with COVID-19 for more than five days, and an isolation period longer than five days, not significantly less as CA and OR have done, is scientifically needed.

Using a symptoms-based approach does not work with a virus like COVID-19 where it's known to have a large number of people who are asymptomatic yet infectious. Disabled people, people of color, older individuals, and everyone who is high-risk have an equal right to access public spaces without an increased risk of severe outcomes. The new isolation policy will also lead to far increased rates of Long COVID, and the CDC is currently shirking their responsibility to public health and equal rights under the law. The CDC has admitted that reasoning includes "assessment of personal and societal costs of extended isolation (e.g., limited paid sick time)"; instead of emphasizing the need for protections that allow people to stay home, getting people back to work and school while ill is the focus.

States can put in place isolation policies that are more protective than the CDC's. Tell your state to reject the CDC's anti-scientific policies and to enact better isolation policies that follow the actual science and protect public health, and demand that they also pursue better policies like paid sick time and accessibility that allow people to stay home while infectious and everyone access to public spaces.

You can also use this letter to write to CDC officials and ask them to reverse the new policy.