Even in the midst of a COVID-19 surge in Europe, the United Kingdom is not following the footsteps of some of the other European countries by imposing stricter measures to force a halt in the flow of transmission of the virus.
The United Kingdom Secretary of Health, Sajid Javid announced on Wednesday that the country has made the decision to reduce the possible self-isolation people for a select group from ten days to seven days. The UK decided that residents who test positive for COVID-19 in England will see their mandatory self-isolation cut to seven days as long as they can produce negative results from lateral flow tests on the sixth and seventh days of their isolation.
While some may be of the opinion that the move is dangerous, Javid states that the UK believes that the decision is a sensible and appropriate one. He states that it is a good sign that those who have tested positive for the virus are self-isolating, which is helping to curb the spread of the virus to others.
According to Javid, the move was made after close conferment with the United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and was brought forward mainly to prevent further disruption to frontline services and businesses. Officials in the UKHSA were convinced that the effects of the seven-day self-isolation period are very similar to the effects of the ten-day self-isolation, a discussion which led them to agree to the reduction of the self-isolation period for those who have gotten two consecutive negative lateral flow tests.
However, those who leave self-isolation after seven (or ten) days are implored to continue exercising caution, limiting close contact with other people in crowded or poorly ventilated spaces, working from home and reducing contact with anyone who may have a severe illness if infected with the virus.
As it stands, the United Kingdom government has no plans to impose strict preventive measures before Christmas, but may be forced to do so after the holidays if the COVID situation worsens.