The NCAA released updated guidelines on Thursday that recognize natural immunity from previous COVID infection as equivalent to being “fully vaccinated.
QUICK FACTS:
- Under the new guidance, the NCAA COVID Medical Advisory Group says those who are “fully vaccinated” has received both primary doses as well as a third booster vaccine, The Blaze reported.
- Also included in the guidelines is the new rule for those who have been previously infected by COVID.
- “A person who has had a documented COVID-19 infection in the past 90 days is considered the equivalent of ‘fully vaccinated.'”
- The NCAA also shortened their quarantine requirements, as recently updated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- Athletes who test positive for COVID are now only required to quarantine for five days rather than ten, and may end isolation if their symptoms are gone after that period.
- Although the guidance is followed by the NCAA, it is not a mandate, and conferences and schools are given the option to choose to observe the rules or create their own for athletes based on local health departments.
BACKGROUND:
- This guidance is drastically different from the NCAA’s Fall 2021 guidelines, which included a separate list of rules for unvaccinated and vaccinated student athletes.
- For those who were unvaccinated, the previous guidelines required weekly PCR testing or three-times-aweek rapid testing. Additionally, during a week with competition, the NCAA required a PCR test within three days of the first competition of the week or a rapid test within one day of the competition.
- Unvaccinated athletes who tested positive for COVID were not able to train or compete until testing negative, while vaccinated students were not required to test unless symptomatic.
