Delta Airlines Asks CDC To Cut Quarantine Time To 5 Days

ATLANTA, GA – Delta Airlines officials have written to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention requesting a shorter quarantine time for vaccinated staffers who contract COVID-19.

Joining CEO Ed Bastian, Delta’s top health officer Dr. Henry Ting and Emory University infectious diseases professor Dr. Carlos del Rios penned a letter addressed to CDC Director Rochelle Walensky requesting the 10-day isolation period for infected individuals be cut in half.

The leaders from the Atlanta-based air carrier suggested that the current quarantine strategy is outdated given the current circumstances, and touted the overwhelming participation of Delta employees to be inoculated against the virus.

“This guidance was developed in 2020 when the pandemic was in a different phase without effective vaccines and treatments,” the letter said.”Over 90 percent of our workforce are fully vaccinated, and those rates are increasing daily.”

The letter pointed to the onset of the omicron variant of the coronavirus, and that its quick multiplying time frame meant that those infected were less susceptible to lengthy illness if they were fully vaccinated.

“With the rapid spread of the omicron variant, the 10-day isolation for those who are fully vaccinated may significantly impact our workforce and operations. Similar to healthcare, police, fire and public transportation workers, the omicron surge may exacerbate shortages and create significant disruptions.”

The CDC earlier this week announced that omicron accounted for 73 percent of the most recent cases in the U.S. In Georgia where 25 cases have been confirmed, state Department of Public Health officials anticipate that the new variant will outpace delta, which caused surges across the nation through the summer.