John Culatto
PEOPLE who get COVID-19 in Gibraltar will now only have to self-isolate for five days after they tested positive, its health authority announced.
Director of Public Health Helen Carter said that they will only be able to leave self-isolation after getting a negative test result.
If they do not get a negative test result on the fifth day, they must test themselves every day after until they get the all-clear or reach the tenth day of self-isolation.
The new rules will take effect from September 1.
“I am delighted to have been able to advise the Government to reduce the self-isolation period to 5 days,” Carter said.
“This is possible due to the low prevalence of COVID-19 in our community at this time.”
Carter said it was “still a more conservative policy to that in UK” where the five-day self-isolation is a recommendation, not a rule.
In the latest COVID-19 update on August 18, there were only 14 new coronavirus cases on the Rock.
Carter said she was still being cautious because Gibraltar is ‘a close and densely populated community’.
But she warned the public that ‘although we are in a far better position, COVID still exists and people should continue to remain aware of the symptoms and take a test if they feel they might be contracting the virus’.
If anyone needed any reminder, one person died in August from COVID-19.
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