Michigan updates quarantine guidance, lifts K-12 reporting order

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan’s health department on Friday updated guidance for how people should quarantine if exposed to COVID-19, shifting its emphasis to focus more on household contacts and less on those exposed in other settings.

Director Elizabeth Hertel also rescinded a 17-month-old order requiring schools to report infections to the school community once notified by local health officials. They still must report cases and outbreaks to county health departments, and the state continues to recommend that schools notify students and staff of potential exposures.

The guidance, which also applies to K-12 schools, says household contacts do not have to quarantine at home if for 10 days they monitor for symptoms, wear a mask around others and avoid unmasked activities or activities with a higher risk of exposing vulnerable individuals. They also should get tested at least once, three to seven days after exposure.

Non-household contacts should monitor for symptoms, be tested if they develop and consider wearing a mask around others.

Guidance for those infected with the coronavirus remains intact. They should isolate at home for five days and, if their symptoms improve or they have none, return to normal activities while wearing a mask for the next five days.

The recommendations also put more of the onus on those who test positive to notify contacts, prioritizing household members.

The state also updated guidelines for child care facilities so they are consistent with schools. It kept in place different standards for health care, long-term care, corrections and other high-risk settings.

Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, Michigan’s chief medical executive, said the guidance reflects that the state is in a post-surge, recovery phase. She encouraged residents ages 5 and older to get vaccinated and boosted when eligible. About 63% of the population is fully vaccinated.

The state’s seven-day average of new daily cases was 745 on Friday. The number of adults hospitalized with confirmed or suspected infects was 809 on Wednesday. Both were the lowest numbers since last summer.