The government announced that self-isolation for people with coronavirus (COVID-19) will be reduced from 10 to seven days from today.
The news comes as the Omicron variant of coronavirus spreads rapidly through the British population and as hospitals and businesses struggle to cope with high levels of sick leave among employees.
“We want to reduce the disruption from COVID-19 to people’s everyday lives,” said Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Sajid Javid.
Under the new rules, people who receive negative lateral flow tests on day 6 and day 7 of their self-isolation period will now be allowed out of self-isolation after seven days.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said its analysis showed that a seven-day isolation period alongside two negative lateral flow device (LFD) test results has nearly the same protective effect as a 10-day isolation period without lateral flow testing for people with COVID-19.
However, those leaving self-isolation on or after day 7 are strongly advised to limit close contact with other people in crowded spaces and with vulnerable people, the agency stressed.
Dr Jenny Harries, chief executive of UKHSA, said: “COVID-19 is spreading quickly among the population and the pace at which Omicron is transmitting may pose a risk to running our critical public services during winter.
“This new guidance will help break chains of transmission and minimise the impact on lives and livelihoods. It is crucial that people carry out their LFD tests as the new guidance states and continue to follow public health advice.”
Meanwhile, Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE) announced that it will provide an additional 2.5 million doses of its COVID-19 pill Paxlovid to the UK.
A total of 2.75 million doses of the pill are expected to be delivered to the UK through 2022, the pharmaceutical group said.
Another 90,629 new COVID-19 cases were reported across the UK on Tuesday and there are currently 129 people in hospital with the Omicron variant, according to UK government data.
The UKHSA is expected to publish more data on Omicron shortly.
It is expected to say today that the Omicron variant is causing a milder disease than the Delta strain in most Britons, according to a report in the Telegraph.
The agency is set to publish real-world data on the severity of the disease, which is expected to say that more people are likely to have a mild illness with less serious symptoms.
While Omicron seems milder overall, the UKHSA has found that it is not necessarily mild enough to avoid large numbers of hospitalisations, the report said.
As the transmissibility of Omicron is very high, there is a risk that, even though it is milder, infection rates could soar to the point that large numbers end up in hospital.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said yesterday that he would not be introducing new COVID-19 restrictions in England before Christmas, but warned that new measures may be needed after the holiday period.