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.
Perhaps, but last time I had covid (two years ago) without Paxlovid it was even worse. I ended up in the ER and my oxygen hung around 82-85% for days. I think I’m just one of the lucky few who won the shitty body prize when it comes to covid response.
Edit: For reference, I’m not in the at-risk age group, I bike 5-7 miles a day, practice yoga regularly, eat a vegetarian diet and get blood tested every 6 months to make sure I’m not nutritionally deficient, I stay on top of my boosters, wear masks when out in crowds…etc. I think it’s just the luck of the draw with some people when it comes to this weird virus.