Officials from the National Football League (NFL) announced that 96 players tested positive for the coronavirus on Monday, marking the highest single-day infection of the league, resulting in 106 athletes being placed in the reserve/COVID-19 list.
Due to the Omicron variant, the situation within the league has become something that officials and teams have not envisioned when they promoted vaccination of players ahead of Week 1. While many of the players who tested positive for the virus did not show symptoms, authorities had what they called "competitive balance."
Spread of COVID-19
Since the spread of the new Omicron variant across the NFL, multiple teams have been stripped of their starting quarterbacks and other key players. The situation comes as teams are getting ready for crucial late-season games.
Some of the players included in the list are Brian Burns, Shaq Thompson, and Brandon Allen from the Carolina Panthers. Additionally, Braden Smith, Malik Jefferson, and Marlon Mack of the Indianapolis Colts will miss subsequent games, Sportsnaut reported.
The situation comes as the country's Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDC) is planning to reduce isolation requirements nationwide. The agency's director, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, said officials were analyzing data to see if reducing the current COVID-19 isolation guidelines was a plausible thing.
During an interview, Walensky said that the agency was actively examining the data available now and were conducting modeling analyses to assess them. She said they expected to have updates regarding the issue soon.
CDC Guidelines
Based on current CDC guidelines, people who test positive for the coronavirus, regardless of their vaccination status, will be required to be isolated for 10 days. The agency also recommends people who believe they have been in close contact with someone who was infected with the virus and unvaccinated to isolate at home for at least 14 days, CBS News reported.
On Monday, authorities proposed the reduction of the isolation requirement from 10 days to five days. Additionally, the CDC reduced the recommended time that individuals should quarantine if they are exposed to someone infected with the virus to five days if they were vaccinated. Officials also said that if a person was vaccinated and had already received their booster shot, they may not be required to quarantine at all.
In a statement, the CDC said that given what they currently know about the COVID-19 and the new Omicron variant, they were making the choice to reduce recommended time for isolation to only five days if a person did not show symptoms and another five days of wearing face masks when around other people.
The CDC added that if a person who was showing signs and symptoms were getting better they were allowed to leave their homes so long as their conditions were improving. Officials said that if people still had a fever they should remain at home until their condition got better.
"The change is motivated by science demonstrating that the majority of SARS-CoV-2 transmission occurs early in the course of illness, generally in the 1-2 days prior to onset of symptoms and the 2-3 days after. Therefore, people who test positive should isolate for five days and, if asymptomatic at that time, they may leave isolation if they can continue to mask for five days to minimize the risk of infecting others," said the CDC in a statement, CNN reported.
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