The CDC recently updated its guidance on defining “close contact” with a COVID-19 positive person as someone who was within six feet of an infected person for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period starting from two days before illness onset (or, for asymptomatic patients, two days prior to test specimen collection) until the time the patient is isolated. The Society for Human Resource Management, a professional human resources membership association, penned an article on this change and what it means for employers and contact tracing in the workplace. In part, SHRM recommends that employers revise current policies and forms based on the CDC’s new definition, and continue to encourage mask wearing.
