《TAIPEI TIMES》COVID-19: CECC to shorten isolation to five days

DOWNWARD TREND: The change was in response to falling caseloads over the past four weeks and as cases were down 17.7 percent yesterday from last week

By Lee I-chia / Staff reporter

請繼續往下閱讀...

The Central Epidemic Command Center （CECC） is shortening the isolation time for confirmed COVID-19 cases to five days starting from Nov. 14, it said yesterday.

A panel of specialists yesterday morning concluded that the isolation period can be reduced, followed by “self-health management” for up to seven days, depending on when a person tests negative for COVID-19 with an at-home rapid test, said Centers for Disease Control （CDC） Deputy Director-General Philip Lo （羅一鈞）, who is the deputy head of the CECC’s medical response division.

“If they test negative on the day they are released from isolation, they will not need to practice self-health management, but if they test positive or do not take a test, they need to practice self-health management until they test negative or for seven days,” he said. “We call it the ‘5+n’ policy.”

As a local outbreak of the Omicron BA.5 subvariant of SARS-CoV-2 has just exited the plateau period, and as some domestic restrictions are to be lifted on Monday next week, the panel suggested waiting a few weeks before implementing the new isolation guidelines for confirmed cases to allow time to adjust supplementary measures, Lo said.

Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang （王必勝）, who heads the center, said that “5+n” isolation for confirmed cases would be implemented from Nov. 14.

“I want to remind people that starting from Monday next week, people who are diagnosed with COVID-19 are still subject to ‘7+n’ days of isolation,” he said.

Asked if the isolation time is being shortened to allow more people to vote during the Nov. 26 local elections, Wang said that the change was in response to a fall in weekly caseloads over the past four weeks, and as new confirmed cases yesterday were 17.7 percent fewer than the previous week, indicating a trend of declining new cases.

People who are allowed to leave home are allowed to vote, so they can go to polling stations even if they tested positive during self-health management, but they must comply with self-health management rules, he said.

Testing positive after five days of isolation does not necessarily mean that a person is still contagious, as they might have a low viral load, he said.

However, it is unlikely that the isolation time for confirmed COVID-19 cases would be further shortened before the end of the year, as the Omicron BA.5 subvariant remains the dominant circulating strain, he added.

The CECC yesterday reported 33,116 new local cases, 68 imported cases and 53 deaths.

Regarding easing other restrictions, Wang said that adjustments to the mask mandate would be discussed this month.

As for removing the booster vaccination requirement for 24 occupations, including teachers, that would be discussed next week, he said.

Asked about expanding eligibility for free, government-funded at-home COVID-19 rapid test kits, Wang said the issue would be discussed in the next couple of weeks.

The center is also working with the developer of the CDC’s Taiwan Social Distancing app to expand its functions to provide more information to the public.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES