From New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, March 21:

As COVID-19 becomes more common in our communities, testing every person presenting with mild symptoms of fever or respiratory illness becomes impractical and does not change how a person’s illness is managed. Therefore, DHHS has shared the following recommendations for COVID-19 testing:

People who are 60 years of age and older, or those with chronic medical problems are at higher risk for hospitalization and death from COVID-19 and should:

  • Stay at home and away from public places.
  • Avoid any domestic or international travel.
  • Call a provider if you are experiencing symptoms. If not severely ill, please call ahead before showing up at a hospital or emergency department.

People who have mild symptoms of COVID-19, even if not tested, should stay home until:

  • At least 7 days have passed since symptoms first appeared.

AND

  • At least 72 hours have passed since recovery; which is defined as resolution of fever without the use of fever-reducing medications and improvement in respiratory symptoms.

People who do not have symptoms but have been notified that they may have been exposed through close contact with a person with COVID-19 or a person presumed to have COVID-19 (without testing), and any persons who have traveled from countries with widespread sustained transmission should:

  • Stay home (self-quarantine) for 14 days from the last day of potential exposure. It can take up to 14 days from the time someone is exposed to develop symptoms of COVID-19.
  • Not be tested for COVID-19 because it doesn’t change the need for a person to self-quarantine even if testing is negative.
  • Help us preserve our medical supplies by not asking to be tested.

For information on the differences between isolation and quarantine, please see the following information: https://www.nh.gov/covid19/documents/terms.pdf.

Symptoms of COVID-19 most often include fever or respiratory illness, such as cough. Early mild symptoms can include fatigue, headache, and muscle aches. Fever may not develop until several days into illness, or not at all, but people can still transmit the novel coronavirus very early in their course of illness.

For more information on COVID-19 in NH, please visit https://www.dhhs.nh.gov/dphs/cdcs/2019-ncov.htm. For the latest information from the CDC, please visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html.

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