Quarantine and Isolation Guidelines for Spring 2022

Dear Faculty and Staff:

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently issued updated guidance as it relates to quarantine and isolation time periods. Late last week, that guidance was adopted by the Onondaga County Health Department (OCHD) following New York State’s endorsement of the revised CDC policy. The Syracuse University Public Health Team has reviewed the updated OCHD guidance, and in turn has revised the University’s isolation and quarantine guidelines applicable to members of the campus community for the spring semester. Accordingly, this message will address updated isolation and quarantine guidelines applicable to:

• COVID-positive faculty and staff working on campus
• COVID-positive faculty and staff working remotely
• Faculty and staff exposed to a COVID-positive individual

The updated isolation and quarantine guidelines are effective beginning today. Please review these new guidelines carefully and keep this information handy during the semester.

COVID-Positive Faculty/Staff Working on Campus

• If you receive a positive test result, notify your supervisor and HR Shared Services by phone at 315.443.4042 that you have received confirmation that you have tested positive.
• Isolate for five days; treat Day 0 as the day of symptom onset or (if asymptomatic) the day of collection of the first positive specimen.
• Employees who reside in Onondaga County must complete the county’s Isolation Self Attestation Form and follow all other guidance and reporting instructions on this website.
• Employees who reside in other counties should contact their local county health department for additional guidance.
• If asymptomatic or if symptoms are resolving after five days, you may exit isolation. If your symptoms such as a fever continue after five days, you should wait until you are fever free without medication for 24 hours before leaving isolation. Symptoms such as loss of taste and smell continue for weeks, so should not be considered.
• All those exiting isolation should wear a well-fitting mask while around others for an additional five days.
• There is no testing requirement to come back to work if asymptomatic or if symptoms are resolving after five days of isolation.
• Follow all other instructions that may be provided by the University.

COVID-Positive Faculty/Staff Working Remotely

• If you receive a positive test result, notify your supervisor and HR Shared Services by phone at 315.443.4042 that you have received confirmation that you have tested positive.
• Isolate for five days; treat Day 0 as the day of symptom onset or (if asymptomatic) the day of collection of the first positive specimen.
• For example, if your first day of symptoms (or if asymptomatic, the day you provided a sample to be tested) is a Monday (Day 0), the first day of the five-day isolation period will begin on Tuesday (Day 1) and extend through Saturday (Day 5). The individual may exit isolation on Sunday, assuming symptoms (if any) are resolving.
• Employees who reside in Onondaga County must complete the county’s Isolation Self Attestation Form and follow all other guidance and reporting instructions on this website. Employees who reside in other counties should contact their local county health department for additional guidance.
• All individuals exiting isolation should wear a well-fitting mask at all times while around others, for an additional five days.
• As per the CDC guidance, there is no testing requirement to come back to work if asymptomatic or if symptoms are resolving after five days of isolation.
• For those working remotely, continue to do so as you are able, in coordination with your supervisor.
• Follow all other instructions that may be provided by the University.

Faculty and Staff Exposed to a COVID-Positive Individual

• If you are fully vaccinated and boosted, the CDC guidelines state that you are not required to quarantine given exposure to a COVID-positive individual. You should, however, wear a well-fitting mask at all times when around others for a period of 10 days.
• Any individual not fully vaccinated and boosted, and who is exposed to a COVID-positive individual, is required to quarantine for five days. A person who is considered to be not fully vaccinated and boosted is someone who meets any of the following conditions:
  • Not vaccinated whatsoever
  • Not fully vaccinated (in the process of being vaccinated, but has not received final vaccine dose)
  • Vaccinated and eligible for a booster, but has not yet received a booster dose
  • Vaccinated and boosted, but received the booster dose within 14 days of being exposed to a COVID-positive individual

• The timeframe of quarantine should be calculated where Day 0 is the last day of exposure to a COVID-positive individual, and Day 1 of quarantine is the first day post-exposure. For example, if your last exposure to a COVID-positive individual is a Monday (Day 0), the first day of the five-day quarantine period will begin on Tuesday (Day 1) and extend through Saturday (Day 5). The individual may exit quarantine on Sunday, assuming no COVID-like symptoms have developed during the quarantine period.
• If symptoms do appear, seek testing immediately.
• Those asymptomatic and exiting quarantine and returning to work should continue to wear a well-fitting mask around others for an additional five days.
• As a rule, anyone exposed to a COVID-positive individual should get tested five days following exposure and watch for symptoms for a period of 10 days.

This information, as well as all other current public health guidance, can be found by visiting Syracuse.edu/staysafe. The University will continue to update the COVID dashboard and share any new information about our COVID public health strategy via email and on the Stay Safe site.

Thank you for your continued cooperation. We look forward to welcoming back our community in just a couple short weeks.

Sincerely,

J. Michael Haynie
Vice Chancellor for Strategic Initiatives and Innovation