COVID-19 is becoming more like the flu and, as such, no longer requires its own virus-specific health rules, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday alongside the release of a unified “respiratory virus guide.”

In a lengthy background document, the agency laid out its rationale for consolidating COVID-19 guidance into general guidance for respiratory viruses—including influenza, RSV, adenoviruses, rhinoviruses, enteroviruses, and others, though specifically not measles. The agency also noted the guidance does not apply to health care settings and outbreak scenarios.

“COVID-19 remains an important public health threat, but it is no longer the emergency that it once was, and its health impacts increasingly resemble those of other respiratory viral illnesses, including influenza and RSV,” the agency wrote.

The most notable change in the new guidance is the previously reported decision to no longer recommend a minimum five-day isolation period for those infected with the pandemic coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2. Instead, the new isolation guidance is based on symptoms, which matches long-standing isolation guidance for other respiratory viruses, including influenza.

  • Pretzilla@lemmy.world
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    7 months ago

    Fuck you CDC. Long Covid is real.

    Just leave 5 days as a recommendation. What’s the harm in that? fuckers.

    Ed: CDC could do better to protect people, but instead bend to capitalist (mostly GQP) forces to ignore that edict and get sick people back out working.

    • candybrie@lemmy.world
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      7 months ago

      I think it’s that case that a lot of these viruses have “long” versions. We just call it things like ME/CFS.

    • SeaJ@lemm.ee
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      7 months ago

      Long CoVID is indeed real but the same issue happens with many other diseases including the flu. That said, Covid is still much deadlier than the flu should not be treated as such.

      • Liz@midwest.social
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        7 months ago

        Long COVID happens at a WAY higher rate than ME/CFS does with any other illness. In an oversimplification, they’re basically the same thing. COVID is the first disease we’ve found that can reliably trigger ME/CFS, to the point where it got its own name.

      • Pretzilla@lemmy.world
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        7 months ago

        Please show me where they addressed long Covid there?

        Anyway, to your point, the casual public fuckhead only sees the headline and just goes out sick and unmasked.

        Same as they did forever when they were sick with a cold to invite some company to their misery.

      • Drusas@kbin.social
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        7 months ago

        And in what way do you think that addresses the fact that long Covid is real and common?