CDC Broadens COVID-19 “Close Contact” Guidelines

On Wednesday, October 21, 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) expanded its guidelines regarding what is considered a “close contact” exposure to a person infected with COVID-19. Previous CDC guidance stated that a close contact existed if a person was within six feet of an infected person for at least 15 consecutive minutes. The CDC’s revised guidance now states that a close contact is considered to have occurred if a person was within six feet of an infected individual “for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period.” According to the CDC guidelines, the time period for determining whether a close contact occurred is the period starting from two days before the infected person developed symptoms, and for asymptomatic persons, two days prior to test specimen collection, until the time the infected person is isolated.

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