WILLEMSTAD - People who have received a booster shot do not need to be quarantined if they have been classified as 'close contact' with someone with Covid-19. The booster shot must have been administered at least a week before contact with the person who tested positive.
"The booster shot only starts working a week after vaccination," said epidemiologist Dr. Izzy Gerstenbluth. Even people who have tested positive for Covid-19 after December 15, 2021 do not have to quarantine as close contact with an infected person. Gerstenbluth: "From that date, the infections are caused by the omicron variant."
In addition, the quarantine period has been shortened from fourteen days to ten days. If you have remained symptom-free after six days, you can have a PCR test taken on the seventh day. This is done at the expense of the government, but only if the appointment for the PCR test is made through the GP. If the test is negative, the quarantine period ends. A positive result or not testing means that someone must sit out the ten days all the way.
The quarantine period could be shortened because research has shown that most people carry enough virus between 4 and 6 days to demonstrate this with a PCR test. “So, if you take the test on the seventh day, it will be negative in the majority of cases. We are taking an acceptable risk,” says Gerstenbluth.
'Out of isolation' system adapted
People who are required to be in isolation after a positive PCR test for Covid-19 will soon receive a proof of recovery by email after ten days. Due to the many infections, many people are at home longer than necessary.
"Our small team cannot handle the large numbers we are dealing with now," epidemiologist Izzy Gerstenbluth admitted. The huge number of 'active cases' is therefore 'fictional and not real'. It will take a few more days to adapt the system, but then the handling of people who are in isolation will be completely automatic.
"From that moment on, the number of active cases will drop enormously," Gerstenbluth predicts. That number therefore says nothing about the covid situation. Gerstenbluth: “It is so high, because we are falling behind more and more. As a result, there are people in isolation at home who could have gotten out of it already.” The new system will quickly make up for that backlog.
According to the Curaçao epidemiologist, the number of active cases is not an indication of the seriousness of the Covid outbreak. "For that you have to look at the number of new infections per day and the number of hospital admissions," says Gerstenbluth. “A decrease in the number of infections automatically means fewer active cases.”
The period for isolation remains unchanged for ten days. Gerstenbluth: "After nine days, most people no longer carry an active virus and can therefore no longer infect others." But those who go out of isolation can still get or keep complaints and become ill. In that case, the doctor should be contacted.