The minimum required quarantine period for anyone with COVID in Cayman has been reduced, Public Health officials announced Tuesday.
Vaccinated cases must isolate at home for a week, while unvaccinated cases are required to isolate for 10 days. Both groups still require a negative PCR ‘exit test’ and could be required to stay in quarantine for longer if they are still positive for the virus. The measures come into effect on Wednesday, 19 Jan.
A drive-through testing centre has been set up at the Truman Bodden Sports Complex to process exit tests for those currently in quarantine, and now eligible for release, on Wednesday and Thursday this week.
Health Minister Sabrina Turner said the introduction of shorter isolation periods would make life easier for many Cayman families impacted by quarantine.
No official figures have been released on active COVID cases since last week. Around 4,000 people are currently believed to be in isolation after testing positive for the virus.
“We understand the difficulties many families have faced because of the COVID-19 restrictions,” Turner said.
“Currently, we know that there is a large number of persons in isolation and quarantine and this new policy will allow many of them to rejoin the community sooner and safely.”
The Omicron variant has seen a continuously high case load in Cayman since late December. The surge follows an outbreak of the Delta variant towards the end of last year. As a consequence, there have consistently been more than 3,000 active COVID cases on the islands at any given time over the past few months.
Acting Chief Medical Officer Dr. Autilia Newton said the changes announced Tuesday were designed to improve the management of the virus to best suit the needs of the community.
“The continuous evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic requires us to consistently assess how we manage the spread of the virus, while ensuring continuity for our economy,” she added.
Schedule for exit tests
Anyone currently in quarantine who is now eligible for release under the new guidelines can attend a special drive-through testing clinic at the Truman Bodden Sports Complex parking lot on Wednesday and Thursday.
Public Health has allotted time slots to process people for testing in alphabetical order:
- 7am-8am: Surname A – D
- 8am-9am: Surname E – K
- 9am-10am: Surname L – R
- 10am-11am: Surname S – Z
Anyone arriving for testing is asked to bring ID, wear a face mask and to return home immediately after the test without making any stops. Public Health indicated it will process the results within 48 hours.
Daily exit PCR testing clinics for COVID-19 positive individuals will continue between 10am and 12pm Friday at the Ed Bush Sports Complex, Bodden Town Civic Centre and South Sound Community Centre.
What are the new rules?
Vaccinated positives
- Fully vaccinated persons who test positive for COVID-19 must isolate for six days, with a negative PCR test required on day seven to exit isolation.
Vaccinated contacts
- Vaccinated persons who are primary contacts of COVID-19 positive persons must conduct daily lateral flow testing for seven days, but may continue usual activities.
Unvaccinated positives
- Unvaccinated or partially vaccinated people who test positive for COVID-19 must isolate for nine days, with a negative PCR test required on day 10 to exit isolation.
Unvaccinated contacts
- Unvaccinated persons in the household of a positive must quarantine for 10 days.
- If a primary contact is a negative, unvaccinated child (under 18 years of age), they should conduct daily lateral flow tests for seven days. They can attend school if daily LFT results continue to be negative.
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Why is there STILL a PCR required to get out of quarantine? We know you can continue to test positive on a PCR for weeks after infection…this new rule is pointless with a PCR still required to exit quarantine.
Requiring a negative PCR still will cause many to stay in quarantine for weeks and possibly months. After having COVID a PCR test is very sensitive and will detect the virus long after it has stopped being contagious. This is a ridiculous requirement and travellers need to stay away. I could not go home until 19 days after my positive test due to this policy. In Canada once you have tested positive with a PCR you only need to wait 10 days in quarantine and then you can travel for the next 170 days without any further PCR testing required. If this government wants to get tourists back they have to wake up on this policy. Surely a negative LFT would suffice , after all this is all they require for you to enter and stay yet interestingly the LFT does not pick up the virus for the first few days when it is initially contagious . They have it all backwards and the island will suffer for a long time after the way they have recently treated travellers holding them hostage well beyond the day they stop being contagious.
People are getting on with their lives everywhere else except in KY. We are working with this “cold/flu”, wearing masks and continuing on. We can’t afford to isolate or quarantine and we are all just fine! Anyone with a suppressed immune system may seem a little sicker but they always do. Cayman needs to stop spreading this fear, that it’s this deadly disease! It’s not! It’s just a flu:bug:cold:etc. You will take your cold meds and press on. This is ridiculous! FLA residents aren’t even masking and have the lowest rate of everything! Wake up Cayman! Don’t follow the sheep! Press on and go to work. Don’t say anything to anyone that your ill and you’ll fight it off, keep getting paid and be stronger! God bless!
Why even any Q? Most of the rest of the intelligent world has figured out isolation doesnt work, so why are we continuing a policy that is ineffective?
Do we not have the confidence to (just) move on and put covid to rest, or are the powers that be trying to hang onto power?
Isolations have already been proven to be a much larger detriment to society than an increased risk of few old unvaccinated that are comfortable taking that higher risk?
The PCR test can and usually does stay positive for 2-8 weeks, long after a person is considered contagious, which is why it is used to detect current or recent infection and not for monitoring disease progression or contagiousness. That is why a negative PCR test is not required to fly into the US.
A vaccinated tourist traveler could test negative in Miami, catch Covid on their first day or two in Cayman, test positive on the day 5 rapid test and not be able to leave on a plane for weeks, waiting on a negative PCR, quarantined in a $400/night rental.
My planned trip in late February is not looking like a go….
This is exactly what happened to me
Although this sounds encouraging, it seems that the government and HSA still “don’t get it.” Several websites, including the following from Huffpost.UK, show that there’s evidence that a PCR culture can remain positive for up to 90 days after an initial infection.
How long after Covid will you rest positive on a PCR?
A PCR tests identifies the presence of coronavirus genetic material in a sample but doesn’t show if someone is currently infectious. A person who has tested positive for Covid-19 can still produce a positive test within 90 days.
The article goes on to say that a rapid-antigen test (lateral flow test) should suffice. Of note is the fact that Cayman has now approved rapid-antigen tests for both entry and departure Covid screening (see Cayman Compass article, Jan. 13).
The government and HSA would do well to look for guidance in the current policies of both the UK and CDC. Their research bases are well-qualified to form various policies regarding the management of Covid-19.
This is crazy. Why is a PCR still required after you have already isolated for 6 days, and are fully vaccinated? And waiting 48 hours for results? Come on Cayman!! You can do better.
5 day isolation, and a rapid test negative, and you’re free to go.
Someone has to making bank on this. Otherwise it is just full on stupidity. No reason to look up so many asymptomatic people for no reason. If you are at risk, you need to be careful. If not, let us free.
Requiring a PCR exit test after isolating for a week is ridiculous! No one is contagious after that period
Did anyone notice the positivity figure at Wednesday 19th Jan (which isn’t presented/published by government) was 34% (2,200 positives out of 6,365 tests).
My brother has 2 units at Morrits and we have been trying for almost two months to jump through all the hoops to get there. We have had to cancel twice because we didn’t have all the requirements they required. We are scheduled for 2 weeks in March. Hopefully it will work out. We have been going there for about 15 or more years. Guess we will have to look elsewhere for our vacation. It’s so sad.