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In updated guidance released Wednesday, the American College Health Association recommended that students who test positive for COVID-19 not leave isolation until they receive a negative rapid antigen test—a departure from the latest CDC guidelines, which lowered the recommended quarantine period from 10 to five days and do not require a negative antigen test to end isolation.
If a student tests positive after five days, they should test again on day seven or eight, said Gerri Taylor, co-chair of the ACHA’s COVID-19 task force. “And then if that is positive, they should stay through the full 10 days of isolation.”
The new guidelines also recommend the use of N95, KN95 or surgical masks on campus, and amend the definition of “up-to-date” vaccination status to include a booster dose, in keeping with CDC guidelines.
ACHA’s update comes about six weeks after the last one, issued Dec. 6, and acknowledges that many institutions have been asking for clarification on the revised guidelines the CDC released around Christmas.
“We’ve asked CDC, from the end of December until now, for guidance for institutions of higher ed,” said Taylor. “And I believe it may still be coming. But our constituents are desperate for guidance.”
The ACHA’s new guidelines acknowledge that contact tracing may no longer be feasible on campuses because of the sheer numbers of cases. (This paragraph has been updated to more accurately reflect the ACHA's recommendation.)
“We’re getting reports from colleges that have hundreds to thousands of students testing positive already,” said Taylor. “And this is without full student participation on campus. So I think in the next week or two, we’re going to see an explosion of cases on college campuses.”
