1. United States
2. Calif.
3. Letter

The CDC should not drop COVID isolation guidelines to adopt a non-scientific policy that would lead to more acute cases, more post-COVID cases, and more deaths. It should instead take public health seriously. For instance, the CDC could show leadership and be: educating about the importance of boosters, providing better data tools, advocating for better air filtration systems in public schools and elsewhere, advocating for paid sick leave, and offering free tests and masks. The CDC has become a politicized institution and lost all scientific credibility. While the general population seems to think an acute case of COVID is like a cold, researchers are showing a very different long term picture of health outcomes.