Do fully vaccinated need COVID test if exposed or sick? What to know as omicron spreads
The new omicron coronavirus variant seems to be more capable of evading protection afforded by the COVID-19 vaccines than past variants — resurfacing questions from fully vaccinated people on if and when they need to get tested for the virus, especially during the busy holiday season.
In general, guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — which was last updated in mid-October, before the omicron variant began its rapid spread in the United States — recommends that people who are fully vaccinated still get tested for COVID-19 if they were exposed to the virus or if they have symptoms.
A person is considered fully vaccinated two weeks after receiving a second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines or two weeks after receiving the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. People do not need to receive a booster shot to be considered fully vaccinated.
But experts have urged everyone to get boosted when they are eligible as evidence suggests the additional shots offer better protection against omicron. People are able to get a booster dose six months after receiving the final dose of their initial series — two shots for Pfizer and Moderna, and one shot for Johnson & Johnson.
Here’s what to know about testing guidelines for fully vaccinated people.
Do you need a COVID-19 test if you are feeling sick?
The CDC says fully vaccinated people who have coronavirus symptoms should get tested and stay home and away from others. Those who are “really sick” should consult their doctor.
Symptoms of COVID-19 include but are not limited to fever or chills, a cough, difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, a sore throat, congestion or a runny nose, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea and new loss of taste or smell, according to the CDC.
A study published in June found that the most common coronavirus symptoms among fully vaccinated people included a headache, runny nose, sneezing, a sore throat and loss of smell.
Additionally, early data collected in London suggested that there is “no clear difference” between early symptoms of the omicron variant compared with the delta variant, McClatchy News reported. The most common symptoms reported by people in London were a runny nose, headache, fatigue, sneezing and a sore throat.
“The trick is you’re not going to be able to tell the difference between omicron, delta, lambda, plain COVID from the beginning,” Dr. Emily Landon, chief hospital epidemiologist at University of Chicago Medicine, told NBC Chicago. “Influenza or even common rhinovirus causes most of our common colds in the winter. You’re not going to know the difference between those if you just look at your symptoms.”
Should you get a test if you’ve been exposed to COVID-19?
Yes. The CDC says fully vaccinated people should get tested if they’ve had close contact with someone who has COVID-19 or symptoms of it.
The CDC defines a close contact as “someone who was less than 6 feet away from an infected person (laboratory-confirmed or a clinical diagnosis) for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period.”
“If you’ve had close contact with someone who has COVID-19, you should get tested 5-7 days after your exposure, even if you don’t have symptoms,” the CDC says. “You should also wear a mask indoors in public for 14 days following exposure or until your test result is negative.”
If a fully vaccinated person tests positive for COVID-19, the CDC says to isolate at home for 10 days.
Experts, however, have questioned whether it’s time for that guidance to change, either by shortening the isolation time frame or by relying more on test results instead of timing, Vox reported.
“We have to keep on reevaluating if isolation can be shortened as we transition to a society where there will be a lot of omicron exposure, given how infectious it is, but hopefully continued protection against severe disease due to cellular immunity,” Monica Gandhi, an infectious-diseases researcher at the University of California San Francisco, told Vox.
About the omicron variant
As of Monday, Dec. 20, the omicron variant has been detected in most U.S. states and territories and is “rapidly increasing the proportion of COVID-19 cases it is causing,” the CDC says. Data on Tuesday, Dec. 21, showed that omicron now accounts for 73% of new infections.
Much is still to be learned about omicron. But early data suggests it can spread and evade vaccines more easily. It’s not yet clear whether omicron causes less severe symptoms.
Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel has said there’s a chance the company’s COVID-19 vaccine could lose some of its effectiveness against the omicron variant. But the company said Monday, Dec. 20, that a dose of its booster vaccine increased antibody levels against omicron.
Similarly, data has suggested that people who have received only two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine saw a reduction in antibody levels against omicron but that the booster shot may help protect against the variant.
Some experts have urged more precautions if attending holiday gatherings, including for the fully vaccinated. Suggestions include taking a rapid antigen test before attending gatherings.
Signs so far suggest current tests can detect omicron. But some experts have said the variant may change the timeline for getting tested before a gathering, The News & Observer reported.
“These viruses grow fast so testing 1 or 2 days before doesn’t work,” Michael Mina, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Harvard University, tweeted.
Dr. David Wohl, from the University of North Carolina’s School of Medicine’s Division of Infectious Diseases, recommended testing twice, The News & Observer reported.
He advised getting a PCR test three days before the gathering and a rapid, at-home test the day of.
This story was originally published December 21, 2021 at 1:45 PM with the headline "Do fully vaccinated need COVID test if exposed or sick? What to know as omicron spreads."
