California Adopts Reduced CDC Quarantine and Isolation Periods – With a Catch

By Benjamin Ebbink, Fisher & Phillips, Hannah Sweiss, Fisher & Phillips, Nicole Kamm, Fisher & Phillips, Abby Harrington, Fisher & Phillips and Julia Sherwood, Fisher & Phillips

On the heels of the CDC’s updated isolation and quarantine guidance reducing the length of time an individual must isolate after contracting COVID-19 and the quarantine period for those exposed to the illness, California has largely aligned these new timeframes – but with a catch. The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) just released updated guidance to conform to the new CDC guidelines but adds additional requirements, including testing to exit isolation or quarantine at Day 5 and improved masking. The December 30 guidance also inserts the issue of booster shots for the first time. What do California employers need to know about the new guidance?

New Isolation and Quarantine Guidance

The new guidance offers revised timeframes and requirements for isolation and quarantine periods that mostly track the new federal guidelines, but does create additional obligations for employers.

Isolation: COVID-19 Cases

All individuals who test positive for COVID-19, regardless of vaccination status, natural immunity, or lack of symptoms, should take the following steps:

• Stay home for at least five days.
• Isolation can end after five days if symptoms are not present or are resolving and a diagnostic specimen collected on Day 5 or later tests negative.
• If unable to test or choosing not to test and symptoms are not present or resolving, isolation can end after Day 10.
• Wear a “well-fitting mask” around others for a total of 10 days.

Quarantine: COVID-19 Exposure

The new CDPH guidance provides two quarantine paths for those who have been exposed to COVID-19, depending on whether the individual has been vaccinated or boosted, if eligible.

1. Unvaccinated or Vaccinated and Booster Eligible, But Not Boosted

   If an individual is unvaccinated or vaccinated and “booster eligible” but has not yet received their booster dose, the following apply:

   • Stay home for at least five days after exposure.
   • Test on Day 5.
   • Quarantine can end after Day 5 if symptoms are not present and a diagnostic specimen collected on Day 5 or later tests negative.
   • If unable to test or choosing not to test and symptoms are not present, quarantine can end after Day 10.
   • Wear a “well-fitting mask” around others for a total of 10 days.
2. Boosted or Vaccinated But Not Yet “Booster Eligible”

   If an individual is boosted or vaccinated but not yet “booster eligible,” the following apply:

   • The individual does not need to quarantine.
   • Test on Day 5.
   • Wear a well-fitting mask around others for 10 days.

When is Someone “Booster Eligible?”

The updated CDPH guidance specifies that someone is “booster eligible” as follows:

• For Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech – six months after second dose
• For Johnson & Johnson – two months after first dose
• For WHO emergency-use-listed vaccine – six months after getting all recommended doses
• Mix- and-match series – six months after getting all recommended doses

What Does “Well-Fitting Mask” Mean?

The CDPH guidance states that, during the days following isolation or exposure when masks are worn, all persons should optimize mask fit and filtration, ideally through use of a surgical mask or respirator.

What Impact Does This Have on the Cal/OSHA ETS?

As a result of a previous Executive Order signed by Governor Newsom, the new CDPH quarantine and isolation periods will become the default rule under the Cal/OSHA ETS as well. However, there are a couple of important caveats to keep in mind:

• The ETS amendments that go into effect on January 14 require individuals to wear a face covering and maintain six feet of social distance if they are not excluded or return to work. So, while the potential shortened time periods under the CDPH guidance apply, California employers will still need to follow the new social distancing requirements beginning on January 14.
• The CDPH guidance requires testing to return after Day 5, which will be incorporated into the Cal/OSHA ETS as well.
• Employers need to be aware that the CDPH guidance introduces the concept of “boosted” individuals for the first time. This could require more employees to be excluded than contemplated under the ETS (even as amended).
  
  Under the amended ETS, an asymptomatic fully-vaccinated employee does not need to quarantine as long as they wear a face covering and social distance for the given time period. However, the CDPH guidance makes a new distinction between boosted and un-boosted individuals. If an employee is vaccinated and booster-eligible but has not yet received their booster dose, they must stay home for at least five days.
  
  Therefore, while the updated CDPH guidance potentially reduces the quarantine period to five days for some individuals, it will require some vaccinated individuals (those who are booster eligible but have not received the shot) to still stay home for five days. In other words, while the CDPH guidance gives with one hand (reduced time periods), it takes with the other (now requiring some vaccinated individuals to stay home for five days).

• Employers still need to check local quarantine and isolation periods as they may be more restrictive. As noted above, the Executive Order signed by Governor Newsom incorporates “the longer of” CDPH or local quarantine and isolation periods into the Cal/OSHA ETS.
  
  The CDPH guidance specifically notes that “local health jurisdictions may be more restrictive in determining isolation and quarantine recommendations based on local circumstances, in certain higher-risk settings or during certain situations that may require more protective isolation and quarantine requirements (for example, during active outbreaks).”
  
  While we anticipate that most local public health departments will move quickly to adopt the new CDPH guidance, their longer time periods will control until they do so. Before making any changes to adopt the new CDPH guidance, you should first check to verify what local quarantine and isolation periods remain in effect.

Further Clarity from Cal/OSHA in the Works?

This recent development complicates an already-complicated situation as employers are preparing to implement changes to the Cal/OSHA ETS that go into effect on January 14. As discussed above, the interaction between the new CDPH guidance and the Cal/OSHA ETS is complicated. Hopefully, Cal/OSHA will soon issue new guidance or updated FAQs to clarify the landscape for employers. Governor Newsom’s Executive Order requires Cal/OSHA to “promptly provide public notice” of any changes to exclusion or return to work periods. Therefore, it is likely Cal/OSHA will provide further clarity to employers in the coming days.

Conclusion

We will continue to monitor this development and provide updates as warranted. Be sure to attend our upcoming webinar on January 5, which will discuss the upcoming changes to the Cal/OSHA ETS in light of this new development. Fisher Phillips is also updating our Cal/OSHA ETS package to reflect both the new changes to the ETS and the new CDPH guidance. Ask your Fisher Phillips attorney about these documents when available.

Make sure you are subscribed to Fisher Phillips’ Insight system to get the most up-to-date information.  If you have questions about how to navigate this recent development

If you have questions about how to ensure that your vaccine policies comply with workplace and other applicable laws, visit our Vaccine Resource Center for Employers or contact your Fisher Phillips attorney, the author of this Insight, or any attorney on our FP Vaccine Subcommittee.

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