Update: US officials defend reduced isolation guideline, new figures on cases

Federal officials are defending the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's decision to cut the amount of recommended time people should isolate after testing positive for the coronavirus.

The CDC announced its recommendation to reduce the number of isolation days from 10 to five Monday. Some have rejoiced in the shortened isolation period, while others have criticized the decision, arguing the CDC turned its back on science and bowed to business interests.

The announcement came days after Delta Airline's CEO publicly asked the CDC for a shorter isolation period, and in the midst of thousands of canceled flights, which airlines have blamed on staffing shortages because of the latest surge in coronavirus infections.

CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said the new recommendation is backed by science on CNN on Wednesday. The most amount of COVID-19 transmission happens in the one or two days prior to developing symptoms and in the two to three days after developing symptoms, Walensky said – totaling five days.

The decision is backed by behavioral science, too, she said.

“It really had a lot to do with what we thought people would be able to tolerate,” Walensky told CNN's Kaitlan Collins.

A USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows recorded U.S. COVID cases this month are already the third-highest of the entire pandemic, and Walensky said she expects even more cases of the highly contagious omicron variant.

The rapidly rising cases contributed to the CDC's decision to shorter the isolation period: Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said forcing everyone who tests positive for COVID-19 to isolate for 10 days could lead to much more dangerous consequences.

“The alternative is something that no one wants: and that’s to shut down completely," he told Chris Hayes on MSNBC. "And we know that’s not going to be palatable to the American public.”

Professional associations have pushed back on the new guidelines, saying they'll be harmful to workers. The American Nurses Association urged the CDC to reconsider its decision, saying it was premature. ...

The United States' second-highest day of reported cases now has the country averaging more than 300,000 new cases per day for the first time, a USA TODAY analysis of Johns Hopkins University data shows. The country reported 2.11 million cases in the 7-day period ending Wednesday, an increase of 82% over the previous week as the omicron variant, holiday gatherings and frenzied testing helped pushed numbers higher.

And 15 states reported their highest-ever case counts: Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia and Washington, and also Puerto Rico. Forty-seven states show rising case counts.

The world set a new record for cases Wednesday – 1.73 million reported in a day – bringing case counts to 7.33 million for the 7-day period, the first time the average has been above more than 1 million per day. At this pace 12 cases are reported every second. Global case counts are up 48% from the previous week. ...