Quarantines in Belgium will be able to be limited to 7 days under the correct circumstances, Prime Minister Sophie Wilmès announced during the National Security Council press conference on Wednesday.
"The concept is not always well understood, it is relatively complicated. An isolation period of 14 days is also often difficult do keep up," Wilmès said. "Therefore, we asked the RMG to re-evaluate the situation."
As a result, quarantines will be limited to seven days as of 1 October.
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People who show Covid-19 symptoms still have to contact their doctor. On day 5 of the quarantine, a new test can be taken. If negative, people may leave quarantine after the week is up. If positive, the quarantine will be extended to the full 2 weeks.
If a person has no symptoms but has been in close contact with someone who has tested positive, or if they have been contacted by contact tracers, they will have to quarantine for seven days from the day of the last contact.
Wilmès underlined that this type of quarantine only applies to people who had close contact with a Covid-positive person, not people that you know or have seen from far away. "That serves no purpose," Wilmès said.
People quarantined because they were in close contact with someone who tested positive also have to make an appointment for one test after five days. If they test positive, then their quarantine will be extended by seven days. If not, the quarantine ends after a week.
Jason Spinks
The Brussels Times
