Receiving a text, phone call or notification of exposure to COVID-19, notifying your school or place of work, and spending days isolating. A pattern that has become all too familiar to many Americans.
But the days of quarantining after exposure have finally come to an end.
According to the CDC, unless an exposed person is in a high-risk congregate setting they no longer have to quarantine after exposure to COVID-19.
"Well, I think that's awesome because there was a lot of people who got affected by that, and couldn't work you know in general, so I think that's really good," said Emauel Giobanelli, Grover Beach resident.
The CDC's new guidance released Thursday says they recommend those who are exposed and asymptomatic wear a high-quality mask for 10 days and get tested five days after exposure.
Santa Maria Bonita, San Luis Coastal Unified and Paso Robles school districts say the guidelines are in alignment with their current COVID-19 quarantine policy, and if a student is exposed but does not test positive or have symptoms they can stay in the classroom.
This update guidance is for those who are not up to date on COVID-19 vaccines and is consistent with the current guidance for those who are up to date on their vaccinations.
The state guidance is also in compliance with the new guidelines.
Though the CDC's guidance does not affect every entity in the county, Dr. Penny Borenstein responded to the importance of quarantine saying, “The bottom line is still, stay home if you’re sick or test positive for covid-19".
Some people are glad to see the quarantine restrictions easing.
"Well I think we can't live in fear our whole lives, you know?" said George Brenner, a visitor from Visiala.
...Others disagree.
"I got exposed by an asymptomatic friend and then I had symptoms and it sucked, so yeah I definitely think even if you're asymptomatic you should still quarantine if you're exposed just to make sure," said visitor Angelica Nicolacoudis.
Along with the quarantine guidance update the CDC added people no longer need to stay six feet away from others. You can find a link to the updated CDC guidance here.
The agency says the guideline changes come as an estimated 95-percent of Americans 16 and older have acquired some level of immunity, either from being vaccinated or infected.
