The CDC quietly revised its testing guidance this week and is now saying that close contacts who have been exposed to the coronavirus but are not exhibiting symptoms “do not necessarily need a test.”The change is alarming experts who point out that a large share of transmissions occur before individuals develop symptoms. Some individuals infected with the coronavirus never exhibit symptoms, but can still transmit the virus to others, too. “This makes no sense,” tweeted Leana Wen, an emergency physician and visiting professor at George Washington University’s Milken Institute School of Public Health. We need MORE testing, not less,” she wrote. The CDC’s new guidance still recommends that “vulnerable” close contacts get tested after potential exposure, which is defined as being within six feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes.

Source: Washington Post August 26, 2020 04:31 UTC