2 September 2023
MANHATTAN (KSNT) – Kansas State University is urging students to adhere to guidelines from federal health authorities in light of an expected increase in COVID-19 cases.
Shawn Funk with K-State said in an announcement on the university’s website that with classes back in session, both the university and the Lafene Health Center recommend following isolation and quarantine guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). General reminders for keeping yourself and others safe from COVID-19 include:
If you have tested positive for the virus, you should isolate yourself from others for five full days at home and then wear a mask around others for another six to 10 days. If you test positive at home, you are urged to contact Lafene Health Center which will send you a letter with the dates of isolation to give to your professors, your RA if you live in a residence hall or your employer. Isolation means staying home and maintaining distance from others in your household.
You are a close contact if you were closely around someone with COVID-19 any time starting two days before their symptoms started or after. Consider taking a home test five days after the last exposure. Close contacts don’t have to quarantine at home but are recommended to wear a mask when around others for 10 days and either take a home test or get tested at Lafene Health Center if symptoms develop.
Home tests are very accurate when they are positive. When they are negative, they can occasionally miss cases, especially within the first one to two days of symptoms. It is best to do two different home tests on two separate days if symptoms just started within the first two days. If both tests remain negative, then COVID-19 is much less likely.
Funk said people should monitor their health every day and stay home if they don’t feel well to help decrease the chance of spreading COVID-19. Another booster vaccine is slated for late September or early October. More information will be released by the Lafene Health Center on vaccine information as it is received.
Kansas is one of several states that saw a moderate rise in COVID-19 cases in August, according to the CDC. More than 25 states were listed as experiencing substantial upticks in COVID-19 hospitalizations in August. A new booster shot targeting a recent strain of the omicron variant is expected to be released this fall.