Toronto Public Health says while those returning from anywhere outside Canada should self-isolate for 14 days upon return, their family members staying with them do not if there’s no symptoms.
For example: my wife and two young children are returning from the US today, as many families have completely changed their vacation plans in recent days because of the outbreak.
While none of us are experiencing symptoms, they will immediately go into self-isolation, so should I as well?
The answer from Toronto Public Health is no.
“The caregiver does not have to self-isolate, he should monitor his health,” said Dr. Michael Finkelstein, acting director of Communicable Disease Control, said in response to this scenario.
On Thursday, Toronto’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Eileen de Villa advised those returning from overseas including the United States, should avoid large gatherings, as well as the elderly for 14 days upon return.
A day later, the measures increased to anyone returning to self-isolate for the two-week period and to avoid contact with others.
"I am making these recommendations based on the available science and evidence and in consideration of our local circumstances," she said.
"We need to reduce the risk of undetected spread of COVID-19 in people's households, and most importantly, we need to mitigate the impact of this virus and help protect the health of our residents."
Medical experts have been closely looking at the effect of asymptomatic transfer of the virus, with several of them telling CNN it’s more responsible for transmission than previously thought.
NOTE: As advisories from Canadian health officials have been evolving, this story will be updated if necessary, along with additional comments from other levels of government and experts.