COVID-19 Quarantine and Isolation Guidance

The Harvey County Health Department, in consultation with the county's public health officer, has adopted the Kansas Department of Health and Environment's quarantine and isolation guidance regarding COVID-19.

If you have received a positive COVID-19 test, please begin to isolate for five days. Please notify other individuals that would be identified as close contacts to inform them they may have been exposed to COVID-19 and should monitor for potential symptoms. Close contact exposure includes someone within 6 feet of a person positive for COVID-19 for a cumulative total of 15 minutes in a 24-hour period, living or staying with a person positive for COVID-19 or direct contact with the secretions of a person positive for COVID-19.

The quarantine and isolation guidance is different for specific groups. Below, please find the guidance for the general, K-12 school, health care and child care populations.

General Population

• Isolation (positive for COVID-19)
  • Stay at home away from people for five days.
  • If you have no symptoms or your symptoms are resolving after five days, and you are fever-free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medications, you can leave your home.
  • Continue to wear a mask indoors and around others throughout the duration. This includes the five days in isolation, and an additional five days beyond isolation as a precaution. Or, take antigen tests 48 hours apart beginning on day six, and if the results are negative, you can be around others without a mask.
• Quarantine (identified as a close contact of a person positive for COVID-19)
  • You do not need to stay home unless you develop symptoms. 
    • It is recommended to wear a high-quality, well-fitted mask indoors and outdoors when around others for 10 days.
    • Watch for symptoms until 10 days after you last had close contact with someone with COVID-19.
    • Take a COVID-19 test at least five full days after your last exposure. Test even if you do not develop symptoms.
      • If the test is negative, continue taking precautions through Day 10. COVID-19 can still develop up to 10 days after exposure.
      • If the test is positive, follow isolation recommendations.

K-12 School Population

• Isolation (positive for COVID-19)
  • Stay at home for five days. 
  • If you have no symptoms or your symptoms are resolving after five days, and you are fever-free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medications, you can return to school. Wear a mask indoors and around others an additional five days, or take antigen tests 48 hours apart beginning on day six, and if the results are negative, you can be around others without a mask.
  • Schools may require a negative antigen test in order to return to school on Day 6.
  • If symptoms continue during the initial five-day isolation, continue to isolate an additional five days (10 total days). 
• Quarantine (identified as a close contact of a person positive for COVID-19)
  • School contacts
    • Students, teachers or staff who choose to wear well-fitting masks daily for at least 10 days after exposure should be tested on Day 5 following their exposure. 
    • Students, teachers or staff who choose not to mask should be tested upon notification of their exposure, and then every other day through Day 7. 
  • Household contacts who attend school
    • If possible, quarantine from the person positive for COVID-19 for five days.
    • Students, teachers or staff who choose to wear a well-fitting mask indoors daily should mask while household exposure is ongoing and for 10 days following their last exposure. Testing is recommended on Day 5 after last exposure, or immediately if symptoms develop.
    • Students, teachers or staff who choose not to wear a mask should be tested upon notification of their exposure, and then every other day through Day 7. 

Health Care Population

• Isolation (positive for COVID-19)
  • Health care personnel with mild-to-moderate illness who are not moderately-to-severely immunocompromised could return to work after the following criteria have been met:
    • At least seven days have passed since symptoms first appeared if a negative viral test is obtained within 48 hours prior to returning to work (or 10 days if testing is not performed or if a positive test at day five through seven)
    • At least 24 hours have passed since last fever without the use of fever-reducing medications
    • Symptoms have improved.
  • Health care personnel who were asymptomatic throughout their infection and are not moderately-to-severely immunocompromised could return to work after the following criteria have been met:
    • At least seven days have passed since the date of their first positive viral test if a negative viral test is obtained within 48 hours prior to returning to work (or 10 days if testing is not performed or if a positive test at day five through seven)
  • Health care personnel with severe-to-critical illness who are not moderately to severely immunocompromised could return to work after the following criteria have been met:
    • At least 10 days and up to 20 days have passed since symptoms first appeared
    • At least 24 hours have passed since last fever without the use of fever-reducing medications
    • Symptoms have improved
    • The test-based strategy can be used to inform the duration of work restriction.
• Quarantine (identified as a higher-risk exposure of a person positive for COVID-19)
  • Following a higher-risk exposure, health care personnel should:
    
    • Have a series of three viral COVID-19 tests
    • Follow recommended prevention and control practices, including wearing well-fitting source control, monitoring for fever or symptoms, and not reporting to work when ill or if testing positive for COVID-19
    • Any health care personnel who develop fever or symptoms consistent with COVID-19 should immediately isolate and contact their established point of contact for medical evaluation and testing.
  • Following a higher-risk exposure, health care personnel should:
    • Work restriction is not necessary for most asymptomatic health care personnel following a higher-risk exposure, regardless of vaccination status. Examples of when work restriction may be considered include:
      • Unable to be tested or wear source control for 10 days following exposure
      • Moderately to severely immunocompromised
      • Cares for or works on a unit with patients who are moderately-to-severely immunocompromised
      • Works on a unit experiencing ongoing SARS-CoV-2 transmission not controlled with initial interventions.

Child Care Population

• Isolation (positive for COVID-19)
  • Stay home for five days.
  • If you have no symptoms or your symptoms are resolving after five days, and you are fever-free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medications, you can return to the child care center. Wear a well-fitting mask indoors consistently for an additional five days.
• Quarantine (identified as a close contact of a person positive for COVID-19)
  • Staff and children who were close contacts but not up to date with COVID-19 vaccinations, or did not have confirmed COVID-19 in the past 90 days, should quarantine for five days, and then can return after five days while wearing a well-fitting mask consistently for an additional five days.
  • For staff and children who cannot wear a mask - including children under 2 years old - the safest option is to quarantine for 10 days
  • During periods of critical staffing shortages, facilities may consider shortening the quarantine period for staff to ensure continuity of operations. This decision should be made in consultation with the Harvey County Health Department.

Additional guidance for specific populations may be established in the future.

COVID-19 vaccines are available for people 6 months old and older. For more information on COVID-19 vaccine availability in Harvey County, click here.

(Updated Feb. 6, 2023)