If you have tested positive for COVID-19, you must isolate. You can go back to your normal activities when, for at least 24 hours, both of the following are true: Your symptoms are getting better overall, AND. You have not had a fever (and are not using fever-reducing medication).
Test (date of test, not date results received). after exposure, even if asymptomatic. If it is not possible to get a test 5 days after the last close contact with someone with COVID-19, quarantine can end after day 5 if there have been NO COVID-19 symptoms throughout the 5-day period.
If you have tested positive for COVID-19, you must isolate. You can go back to your normal activities when, for at least 24 hours, both of the following are true: Your symptoms are getting better overall, AND. You have not had a fever (and are not using fever-reducing medication).
Stopping the Spread of COVID-19 to Others Stay home unless you need medical care. Don't go to work or school and avoid public places like stores. Stay away from others. Wear a mask. Wash your hands. Call your close contacts.
“In the early days of the pandemic, it was recommended to isolate for 10 days after having a positive COVID test. And then a few years ago, the CDC changed its recommendation: you could come out of isolation five days after receiving a positive test and wear a mask for the additional five days.”
You are considered contagious from two days before your symptoms begin until 10 days after your symptoms began. If you have no symptoms, you are considered contagious beginning two days before your test sample was collected and until 10 days after your test sample was collected.
Consider staying away from people at high risk of getting very sick until: 10 days have passed since your symptoms started, 10 days have passed since you tested positive (if you never developed symptoms), or. You test negative for COVID-19 with an antigen test (such as an at-home test)
While people become less contagious over time, they are still contagious with COVID for an average of eight days. That may vary depending on factors including underlying health conditions and the severity of illness.
Day 4-5: Symptoms become more pronounced; fever, cough, and fatigue intensify. Day 6: Potential appearance of gastrointestinal symptoms like nausea or diarrhea. Day 7: Heightened symptoms which may include difficulty breathing and persistent chest pain.