Asymptomatic testing

As a reminder, if you have been traveling over the holidays, we strongly recommend isolating and testing upon return prior to resuming work in lab, particularly given the more transmissible variant of COVID now spreading through the US.  If you are asymptomatic, you can sign up for testing here:

https://covid.iu.edu/health-and-safety/testing-requirements.html

On-campus voluntary testing resumes 4 January.  Note that the CDC has taken an evolving position on the duration of isolation in the case of potential exposure.  Dr. Aaron Carroll, who serves on the IU Medical Response Team weighed in on that matter in this NYT column, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/22/opinion/cdc-quarantine-guidelines.html  in which he shares his support for continuing to observe 14 days.  For those traveling internationally, a two week quarantine is required prior to return to campus. IU does not have formal guidelines for the return of graduate students, faculty and staff from personal domestic travel during which potential exposure is unknown. However, we urge anyone who has traveled over the holidays to keep the safety of the department at the forefront by isolating and getting tested.

The covid.iu.edu link above also includes information on other testing options.

Mitigation (surveillance) testing will also resume Monday, 4 January, and we have been told that the frequency of mitigation testing will be increased relative to fall.  Please check your email to see if you have been called for testing.  If you are still out of town or are not planning to return to campus in the coming months, you can fill out an exemption request form (link is in the mitigation test email).  Note that mitigation testing is separate from voluntary asymptomatic testing.  A voluntary test does not exempt one from being selected for a mitigation test.  Links for scheduling the mitigation testing will be in an email sent to you from “IU COVID-19 Testing.”

If you are symptomatic, as always, please go through the IU virtual visit app.