The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has posted new COVID-19 testing guidance indicating that some people without symptoms may not need to be tested — even following contact with an infected person.

Assistant Secretary of HHS Admiral Brett Giroir

The agency previously had advised local health departments to test people who have been within six feet of an infected person for more than 15 minutes, even if they did not show symptoms of the disease. On Monday, these recommendations had been changed to read, “[y]ou do not necessarily need a test unless you are a vulnerable individual or your health care provider or state or local public health officials recommend you take one.”

The policy decision may have been controversial, but the science is not, Department of Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary Brett Giroir told reporters in a Wednesday afternoon press call. The call came amidst an eruption of questions about the change in the press and on social media.

The question officials faced was a matter of whether to treat every American as though they are as vulnerable as a critical infrastructure worker (such as an eldercare provider), Giroir said. 

Unlike these workers, not everyone who comes into close contact with an infected person and does not have symptoms may need to be tested if they are following prescribed mitigation measures known to be effective, Giroir added. These include mask-wearing, frequent hand washing, and quarantining oneself after known exposure. 

The CDC guidelines do prescribe regular testing for asymptomatic critical infrastructure workers in a variety of scenarios. At this time, critical infrastructure workers probably account for more than half of the American population, Giroir concluded.