Vaccinated People Should Get Tested if Exposed to COVID-19, CDC Says

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reversed its previous guidelines, now recommending that vaccinated people should get tested if they come into contact with someone who may have COVID-19, even if they show no symptoms.

On Tuesday, the agency also updated its mask guidance, urging fully vaccinated people in areas with high or substantial COVID-19 transmission rates to resume wearing masks.

The new recommendations come amid reports of breakthrough infections from the Delta variant, which is transmissible among both unvaccinated and vaccinated people. Breakthrough infections are typically mild, but provide opportunities for the virus to continue to mutate and spread.

David Edwards, PhD, professor of biomedical engineering at Harvard University and founder of FEND, says the testing recommendation is for the good of public safety as opposed to the personal safety of someone who is fully vaccinated. FEND is a device that stops some airborne particles from entering a person’s upper airways.

“The idea of people still being tested is a good one because I may be vaccinated, but I still may be a host,” Edwards tells Verywell.

Sean Parsons, CEO of Ellume, a company that develops diagnostic products including an at-home COVID-19 test, says testing will be important in identifying cases of asymptomatic spread. These are more and more likely to occur as we move toward the “post-pandemic world,” he adds. 

“COVID is going to continue to circulate and people will continue to contract COVID even if they're vaccinated,” Parsons tells Verywell. 

Ellume’s at-home COVID-19 test comes with an app, which walks users through how to properly take and test a nasal sample. The results are 96% accurate and display on the app within 15 minutes, according to Ellume. 

For people who are fully vaccinated and asymptomatic, the purpose of testing is less for connecting them to treatment and more for preventing community spread that could harm others, Parsons says. This can be particularly crucial in school-aged children and people who live with older adults.

“Reducing severe outcomes for those people in at-risk groups, but then reducing viral transmission for the other groups is really where we're headed," Parsons says.

The information in this article is current as of the date listed, which means newer information may be available when you read this. For the most recent updates on COVID-19, visit our coronavirus news page.