Dr Fernando Simón, Director of the Centre for the Coordination of Health Alerts & Emergencies, says the Spanish health authorities are looking at the possibility of reducing the coronavirus quarantine period from 14 days to 10 and it could eventually be reduced to 5 or 7 days.
Dr Simón said it’s not necessary to isolate for two weeks if a PCR test after 10 days is negative.
"The possibility of decreasing the quarantine to 10 days is being debated, but I think that reducing it to 5 or 7 days will take longer," he said.
Vaccinations
Spanish Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, Health Minister, Salvador Illa and Dr Simón, are hopeful that the first doses of the AstraZeneca-Oxford University vaccine will be available by the end of this year.
Dr Simón says the most vulnerable groups will probably be vaccinated first, such as the elderly, those with previous risk pathologies and Healthcare Professionals.
He also said pressure on hospitals is currently hovering around 7% and that new measures are being analysed to try to lighten the load in areas where the burden is greater.
Dr Simón warned that interpreting rapid coronavirus screening tests is not easy, because it changes depending on the incidence of disease in the area where the person has been exposed to the virus.