CDC’s Latest COVID-19 Guidance Complicates 6-15-48 Contact Tracing Procedures For Employers

This legal alert was published on October 22, 2020 by Nicholas Hulse and Travis Vance in Charlotte.

New COVID-19 contact tracing procedures released by the federal government yesterday have expanded the category of individuals who are deemed to be in close contact with each other – and will complicate the already difficult task faced by employers when trying to maintain a safe workplace environment. The updated guidance now indicates that workers should be considered to be at risk of contracting the novel coronavirus if they were within six feet of an infected individual for a total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period during the 48 hours before the infected individual exhibited symptoms or, if asymptomatic, 48 hours before the COVID-19 test was administered, even if the interactions that lead to a cumulative total of 15 minutes were brief and spread out over that time. What do employers need to know about this new standard, and more importantly what do you need to change about your workplace practices?