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CDC: After COVID-19 recovery, patients are likely unable to spread virus for 3 months

CDC: After COVID-19 recovery, patients are likely unable to spread virus for 3 months
Posted at 7:01 PM, Aug 14, 2020
and last updated 2020-08-14 22:08:11-04

In updated guidance, the CDC said that those who have recovered from the coronavirus do not need to be re-tested for the virus for three months after their infection barring they’re asymptotic.

The refreshed guidance suggests that the CDC expects those with previous coronavirus infections are unable to spread the virus for three months.

“People who have tested positive for COVID-19 do not need to quarantine or get tested again for up to 3 months as long as they do not develop symptoms again,” the guidance says. “People who develop symptoms again within 3 months of their first bout of COVID-19 may need to be tested again if there is no other cause identified for their symptoms.”

In a statement to CNN, the CDC clarified that does not automatically mean someone is immune for three months. The updated guidance comes after much discussion and speculation on the possibility of becoming infected for a second time with the virus.

The guidance is “based on the latest science about COVID-19 showing that people can continue to test positive for up to 3 months after diagnosis and not be infectious to others,” the statement read.