A minister of cabinet has stated that reducing the Covid self-isolation time to five days will “definitely assist.”
After a revelation in the Sunday paper, Nadhim Zahawi denied the government’s plan to stop providing free lateral flow tests.
People who are Covid positive must isolate themselves for a minimum of seven days, but personnel shortages are affecting various industries.
Mr. Zahawi told a leading network that the country was moving from “pandemic to endemic” status.
He believes that shortening the period of self-isolation might help with employee absenteeism.
When asked about tests, the secretary indicated they would go on as planned, but that contingency plans were in place as well.
Mr Zahawi, a former vaccinations minister, dismissed the Sunday Times report, claiming that 425 million lateral flow devices had been ordered by the government in January.
He stated that the government was not asking for the elimination of free lateral flow tests.
The self-isolation window in the United States was recently reduced to five days, and the secretary said it was crucial to remember that in the United Kingdom, isolation began when you got the symptoms, whereas in the United States, it began when you tested positive.
Mr Zahawi told BBC One’s Sunday Morning that (UKHSA) the UK Health Security Agency had warned that reducing the period from seven to five days could result in a greater surge.
He stated that the government would follow science, but that the proposed measure will be reviewed.
Last month, the rules for those infected with Covid in England altered, reducing the quarantine period from ten to seven days if they tested negative on day six and day seven.
Humza Yousaf, the Scottish Health Secretary, said his administration was “not thinking” about reducing the isolation period to five days at this time, after going from ten to seven days.
“I believe it would be wise to assess the impact,” he stated.
Because of the necessity to balance the effects caused by the virus and those caused by attempting to suppress it, what is considered appropriate evolves as vaccines and new treatments reduce the risk Covid poses.
Take the self-isolation period; infectiousness isn’t something you can turn on and off. It does not just switch from on to off.
Instead, people progress from a high level of infectiousness to a lower level of infectiousness over time.
