-Messenger photo by Chad Thompson
Diandre McCubbin, front, Gabe Pettit, and Brielle Alexander, socially distance while wearing masks along Central Avenue near City Square Park Wednesday. Iowa health officials have changed the quarantine guidelines. People do not have to quarantine after coming contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19 as long as both of them were in contact were consistently and correctly wearing a mask.

Webster County Public Health started implementing new guidance Tuesday regarding mask use and COVID-19 quarantine requirements immediately following changes announced by the Iowa Department of Public Health.

Now, those exposed through close contact to others who test positive for COVID-19 will no longer be asked to quarantine for 14 days if a face covering was consistently and correctly worn by both parties during the period of exposure.

Previously, all close contacts of COVID-19 patients were recommended to quarantine, even if masks were worn by both parties.

For public health purposes, close exposure is defined as being within 6 feet for 15 minutes or more. Cloth face coverings, worn correctly to cover the mouth and nose, are required for the new quarantine exemption implemented by Iowa. WCPH said in a news release Wednesday that a face shield is not considered to be a face covering, and that the new guidance does not serve as a replacement for social distancing, which “should be practiced as an extra precaution.”

WCPH said that close contact exposures will still need to monitor themselves for symptoms over two weeks and stay home if symptoms develop.

-Messenger photo by Chad Thompson
Diandre McCubbin, left, and Brielle Alexander, employees of Shiny Top Brewing, back away from each other while wearing masks outside of the business on Central Avenue Wednesday.

“If individuals who are self-monitoring become ill but do not get tested, they should remain at home until 10 days after symptom onset,” the release advised.

The new guidance, announced in a press conference Tuesday with Gov. Kim Reynolds, follows adjustments made in Nebraska and Wyoming, according to Dr. Caitlin Pedati, state public health medial director.

State leaders said that in northwest Iowa, where there has been a recent surge in COVID-19 infections not tied to any particular event, a comparison of school districts showed that those who did not use face coverings saw 30% to 130% higher rates of new COVID-19 cases than schools that used face coverings.

Citing frustrations from school superintendents that quarantine requirements created disproportionate absences in schools, Reynolds hoped the new rule would incentivize more mask use as she continues to rebuff pleas from various medical experts to enforce a statewide face covering mandate. Such a mandate has been repeatedly urged by the White House coronavirus task force.

Dr. Jesse Ulrich, superintendent of Fort Dodge Community School District, agreed that quarantines can be a burden on students and staff alike.

“This is difficult for students, when they suddenly have to stop going to school for two weeks,” he said, requiring a transition to online learning. “Those aren’t easy transitions and create burdens on families.”

He said the new guidance, for schools, was a step in the right direction. Earlier in the semester, 17% of students at Fort Dodge Senior High School were quarantined — the highest rate so far in the new school semester. For families frustrated with quarantines, he hopes the new rule will incentivize them to wear face coverings. Instead of quarantining 10 to 14 students per positive case, Ulrich estimated the new rule might reduce the effects to a small handful.

“It truly does affect the quality of instruction all around,” he said. “It’s unfair for our teachers to expect that burden (with providing instruction in divided ways).”

Pedati said Tuesday that state data shows transmission does not occur frequently when masks are correctly used by all parties involved.

“This is an incentive to get them to do it,” Reynolds said. “This is what superintendents are asking for. I think it’s a great effort that we can put in place to provide them the flexibility to move in that direction.”

The new guidance on quarantines vis-a-vis wearing masks during exposures runs contrary to guidance by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which still recommends quarantining after exposure, even if masks were worn.

Those currently in quarantine who were exposed while both parties wore face masks may discontinue their isolation, WCPH advised. The new state guidance still stipulates that household contacts and contact in health care settings follow the 14-day quarantine recommendation. Rules for those who test positive for the coronavirus also remain unchanged.

“As we continue into this pandemic and also enter into flu season, mask wearing is a good public health practice as masks will contain the spread of many germs including COVID-19, influenza, and other viruses,” said Kari Prescott, director of WCPH. “This new guidance requires that both parties wear masks. If one person isn’t wearing a mask or isn’t wearing it properly, then the exposed person will still have to quarantine.”

Other long-standing guidance, such as remaining home while sick, remains imperative to prevent further COVID-19 transmission, WCPH said. If unsure whether your symptoms are COVID-19 related, remain at home until you know with certainty.