COVID-19 Close Contact Advisory for Non-Healthcare Workers

Contact tracing done at your workplace revealed a possible exposure to a confirmed COVID-19 case. You were identified as a close contact to the COVID-19 positive person and may have been exposed to the virus. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the virus is spread mainly between people who are in close contact with one another (less than 6 feet apart for 15 minutes or longer) through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes.

Learning of a potential exposure can be upsetting, but contact with someone with COVID-19 does not necessarily mean that you will get COVID-19 or become seriously ill. Most people with COVID-19 have mild illness and can recover at home. Some people who have the virus may not have any symptoms at all. That is why your employer is working closely with the County of Santa Clara Public Health Department to take precautions to prevent further exposure.

Please see below instructions regarding quarantine, work exclusion, clinical care, and testing.

Testing and Quarantine/Isolation

As a worker who has come into close contact with someone who was confirmed to have COVID-19, you are directed to self-quarantine at home and get tested as instructed below.

You must stay home, even if you test negative, because it can take up to 14 days to become infected with COVID-19.

If you do NOT have COVID-19 symptoms:

• Get tested around 7 days after your last exposure to the case.
• If you got tested before that, get tested again towards the end of your 14-day quarantine period.

If you have or develop COVID-19 symptoms:

• Get tested immediately and separate yourself from any household members as much as possible.
  o If your test result is positive, you must remain isolated at home until at least 10 days have passed since your symptoms began AND after at least 3 days with no fever and respiratory symptoms have improved.
  o If your test is negative and you were tested earlier than 7 days from your last exposure to the case, you must quarantine at home for a full 14 days and get tested again towards the end of your 14-day quarantine period.
  o If your test is negative, and it was done later than 7 days from your last exposure to the case, no additional testing is needed, but you still must quarantine at home for a full 14 days.

If you develop COVID-19 symptoms (fever, cough, shortness of breath, chills, night sweats, sore throat, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, tiredness, muscle or body aches, headaches, confusion, or loss of sense of taste/ smell), contact your doctor immediately. If you do not have a doctor, you may contact the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, Valley Connections Line at 1-888-334-1000 and ask to speak to an advice nurse.

Work Exclusion

You are excluded from coming to the worksite during the quarantine period but can work remotely. Once the above testing and quarantine period requirements are met, you may return to the worksite in combination with your employer’s recommendations, which may be specific to your position.

For more information on COVID-19, please visit our website at www.sccgov.org/covid19. Thank you for doing your part to stop the spread of the virus and keep our community healthy.