CDC eases quarantine guidance for people fully vaccinated for Covid

‘This updated guidance is not an all-clear for New Yorkers to let their guard down.’

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says people who are fully vaccinated from Covid-19 don’t need to quarantine if they have been exposed to someone with Covid– for within 90 days after getting the second shot.

“Fully vaccinated persons who meet criteria will no longer be required to quarantine following an exposure to someone with Covid-19,” the CDC said in the updated guidance Wednesday.

People are considered fully vaccinated if they have both shots of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines – and at least two weeks have gone by since the second dose was administered.

However, people who have had both shots should quarantine if they have had Covid exposure more than three months after being vaccinated because it is unclear how long the vaccine will be effective.

The CDC said vaccinated people should follow all other health guidance, including wearing a mask and social distancing when possible.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Dr. Howard Zucker, commissioner of the state Department of Health, issued this statement this afternoon:

“Yesterday the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its guidance regarding quarantine following exposure to someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19. According to the guidance, ‘asymptomatic fully vaccinated individuals’, meaning those who have received both shots and at least two weeks have passed since the second shot, are no longer required to quarantine within 90 days after the second shot.

“From the outset of the pandemic, New York State has followed the science and listened to the experts, and quarantine requirements only for New Yorkers who have received both shots will be similarly updated to reflect the CDC’s new guidance. However, the science regarding Covid transmissibility post-vaccination remains unsettled, and this updated guidance is not an all-clear for New Yorkers to let their guard down.

“All New Yorkers, including those who have been fully vaccinated, should continue to wear masks, social distance, and be smart until herd immunity is reached and this pandemic is fully relegated to the history books.”