The Omicron variant has fueled a rise in Covid-19 cases across the United States. Here’s what you need to know if you get infected.
As the Omicron variant continues to spread around the country, many more people, including those who have been vaccinated, will test positive for the coronavirus. So what should you do if you’re one of them? We spoke to physicians and infectious disease experts about the steps you should take after a positive test or if you find out you’ve been in close contact with an infected person. Here’s their advice. If you’re in public or around people when you get the bad news, put on a mask immediately. Then isolate yourself as quickly as possible, even if you don’t have symptoms. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends isolating for 10 days after you test positive. If you live with roommates or family, try to separate yourself from other people (and animals) as much as possible. “You should take yourself out of society,” said Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease expert at the University of California, San Francisco. “Wall yourself up in a cocoon.” Isolating in a home with other people may be difficult, but do the best you can. That means staying in your room, away from other members of the household, even for meals. Someone should deliver food to your bedroom door if possible. If the home has more than one bathroom, designate one just for the infected person. If the infected person is a child or older person who needs assistance, both the caregiver and the infected person should wear a mask when the caregiver enters the room, and open the windows if possible. If you must stray into common areas or share a bathroom while you’re infected, always wear a high-quality mask when you leave your room. If other people are in the house, they should mask up too when you’re in the same room. After using a shared bathroom, disinfect the toilet seat and handle, as well as the faucet handles, soap dispenser, counter and light switch. Close the lid before you flush, and turn on the exhaust fan. Open windows to improve ventilation in shared areas. The people living in your household should take precautions, but they don’t need to panic about getting infected too, especially if they’re vaccinated. “The household rate of contracting Covid from someone is not 100 percent by a long shot, even with the more transmissible variants,” said Dr. Paul Sax, an infectious disease expert at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and professor at Harvard Medical School. While it can help incrementally to continue to wipe down shared spaces, “the most important thing is keeping people from breathing air that is filled with germs,” said Tara Kirk Sell, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. If you have a HEPA air cleaner, place it in or outside your bedroom. If you’ve tested positive and feel well, you can take a walk outdoors and get fresh air. If you’re in a city where you will cross paths with other people, wear a mask and keep your distance. If you tested positive after taking a rapid home test, you may want to take a second home test using a different brand or go to a testing center to confirm the result.
