The Albany County Department of Health has issued updated guidance, in accordance with the CDC, regarding the quarantine period for unvaccinated students and staff who are deemed a close contact of a person positive for COVID-19. The Guilderland Central School District has adopted the new measures, effective Monday, November 29.
Please note that this test out guidance does not apply to direct contacts based on an exposure in the home. This guidance only applies to direct exposures at school.
Testing Out of Quarantine
This guidance permits asymptomatic individuals exposed to COVID-19 to test out of quarantine after seven days, instead of the current ten day requirement. For quarantine to end under this guidance, a COVID-19 test must be conducted no earlier than the morning of the sixth day of quarantine and within 48 hours of the planned end of quarantine. If test results are negative for COVID-19, individuals may finish their quarantine period at the end of day seven. This allows the individual to end quarantine a full three days sooner and return to work or school at this time. It is important to note that the quarantine cannot be discontinued earlier than after the seventh day.
Where to Obtain a Test
To test out of quarantine, a lab-based PCR test (i.e. via Quadrant Biosciences) must be utilized. GCSD offers a COVID-19 testing facility, located behind GCSD Maintenance Facility Building 3, 2 Dutchmen Lane. Appointments are not needed however a profile must be created with Quadrant Biosciences at app.clarifi-covid-19.com. When creating a Quadrant Biosciences profile, please remember to indicate your individual school building and to accurately enter your birthdate. For more information on the GCSD COVID-19 testing program, please visit the district website.
Testing Out of Quarantine is Only for Individuals Who Remain Asymptomatic
For quarantine to end after seven days, the individual must not have developed any COVID-19 symptoms since their last exposure, including but not limited to fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting and diarrhea. This policy does not apply to those who have already tested positive for COVID-19.
Continued Vigilance If Testing Out of Quarantine
If an individual is able to test out of quarantine, they must agree to the following conditions:
- Symptom monitoring: if, during the quarantine period, the individual starts to develop COVID-19 symptoms, they must immediately self-isolate and seek testing.
- If the test is positive, they will need to quarantine for ten days from the date the symptoms started.
- If the test is negative, they will need to quarantine for 14 days from the date of last exposure.
- Mask wearing: masks should be correctly and consistently worn must for the full duration of the 10 day quarantine period, whenever in the presence of other people, whether indoors or outdoors.
- Social distancing: individuals should stay at least six feet from other people (or three feet as appropriate in a school setting), avoid crowds, poorly ventilated spaces and public transportation/ride sharing/taxis.
- Personal hygiene and environmental cleaning: handwashing, use of hand sanitizer and cleaning/disinfecting of spaces must be done routinely.
For more details on Albany County Department of Health’s guidance regarding testing out of quarantine, please visit here. If you have any questions, please contact your school nurse.