A health care worker is seen outside the Emergency dept. of the Vancouver General Hospital in Vancouver on March 30, 2020. Hospital emergency rooms in Alberta are likely to assess complaints from First Nations people as less urgent than those from other patients even when their problems are the same, says a new study that looked at millions of such visits. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

A health care worker is seen outside the Emergency dept. of the Vancouver General Hospital in Vancouver on March 30, 2020. Hospital emergency rooms in Alberta are likely to assess complaints from First Nations people as less urgent than those from other patients even when their problems are the same, says a new study that looked at millions of such visits. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

BC CDC apologizes for confusion about COVID isolation guidance for unvaccinated people

Isolation time was briefly shortened to five days for everyone

The B.C. Centre for Disease Control has issued an apology over the confusion it caused by issuing and then retracting COVID-19 isolation guidance for unvaccinated individuals.

The issue first arose Tuesday (Jan. 18), when the BC CDC shortened the isolation period for unvaccinated individuals to five days. That move halved the isolation time for the unvaccinated and eliminated the distinction between how long vaccinated and unvaccinated people must isolate for. The isolation period for vaccinated individuals was lowered to five days in December.

On Wednesday evening, the BC CDC changed the guidelines again, reversing their decision to shorten COVID-19 isolation time for unvaccinated individuals. The isolation time for vaccinated individuals remains at five days.

The BC CDC said that it understood that the changes led to confusion.

“We apologize for the web posting and changes that occurred yesterday,” the BC CDC said in a statement. “We also recognize people in British Columbia are frustrated with the ongoing pandemic, and they want and need clear communication on changes that impact their lives. We will strive to ensure there is a better change management process for future changes.”

READ MORE: B.C. CDC updates COVID isolation time back up to 10 days for unvaccinated adults


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