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The long-awaited list of workers who could avoid self-isolation if they were ‘pinged’ by the NHS Test and Trace app has been released by ministers amid mounting pressure.
Here’s all you need to know
As of Thursday, guidelines released for England mean that some employees providing essential services will no longer be legally required to self-isolate if they have been identified as someone’s contact with Covid by the NHS Test app and Trace.
While the government has said that self-isolation remains an essential tool in reducing the spread of the virus, it has stressed that a number of named workers will be able to avoid it “in the small number of situations where self-isolation isolation of close contacts would result in serious disruption of critical services ”.
The rules, however, state that this process does not apply to workers who have tested positive for Covid-19, as well as for contacts who develop symptoms regardless of their role or vaccination status. The rules of self-isolation remain normal in these circumstances.
How the Covid-19 NHS app works
When will I be pinged by the NHS app?
When will I be pinged by the NHS app?
If an app user tests positive for the coronavirus, they can choose to share their result anonymously.
The NHS will then send alerts to other users of the app who have spent time near them or have been in ‘close contact’ over the past few days. These alerts will never identify an individual.
“Close contact” is algorithm-based, but usually means you’ve been within 2 meters of someone with coronavirus for 15 minutes or more.
If the app user who tested positive has booked their test through the app, the test result will automatically be sent to their app. However, they still need to click “share random credentials” before their close contacts can be notified. If they booked their test via an alternate route, they will also need to link their test result to the app using a code.
This means that you will not always receive a close contact alert the same day the person received their positive test result.
Your period of self-isolation is calculated from the date you have been in close contact with the person who tested positive.
Source: NHS Test and Trace
What should I do if I am “pinged” by the application?
What should I do if I am “pinged” by the application?
If you receive an alert telling you that you have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive for the coronavirus and you need to self-isolate, then you will need to say home for a full 10 days after that contact.
It may take up to 10 days for symptoms to appear. People in your household won’t need to isolate themselves unless you develop symptoms.
If you develop symptoms of coronavirus during this 10 day period, you are advised to use the symptom checker in the NHS COVID-19 app to find out if it could be coronavirus.
If the app confirms that you may have coronavirus, it will direct you to a website where you can book a coronavirus test.
If you are showing symptoms of coronavirus, you and anyone in your household or supportive bubble will need to stay home until you have been tested and got your result and advice on what to do next.
If you don’t develop symptoms after 10 days, you can stop isolating yourself. You won’t need a coronavirus test.
If you are under 18 and your coronavirus test is positive, you should tell a trusted adult before you take action.
If you have questions about how the advice applies to you, or if you are having trouble isolating yourself, you are advised to call 111.
Source: NHS Test and Trace
What alerts will the NHS COVID-19 app send me?
What alerts will the NHS COVID-19 app send me?
The NHS COVID-19 app will send alerts in the following situations:
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You have been in close contact with someone who tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19).
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You visited a place where you may have come in contact with other people who have since tested positive for COVID-19.
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Information for your region has changed.
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You have booked your test through the app and your test results have arrived.
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You paused contact tracing and set a reminder to reactivate it.
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Your focus has changed. For example, your period of self-isolation is over.
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You are advised or required to update your application to the latest version.
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You did not select “Warn others” or “Do not notify others” and more than 24 hours have passed.
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If you need to isolate yourself, you will be able to see it in the app as a self-isolating countdown timer.
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Other alerts may state: “Possibility of exposure to COVID-19”.
Source: NHS Test and Trace
The change applies to workers appointed in specifically approved workplaces – mainly from 16 sectors including essential transportation, food supply, emergency services and energy.
See the full list here.
Workers should also be fully vaccinated, defined as someone who is 14 days after the final dose.
This is not a “blanket exemption” for all workers in a sector, the government explained – for example, while the rail signaling operators on which the network depends may benefit from an exemption, it is unlikely that individual train drivers benefit.
the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs said certain tests are applied when identifying whether a person could attend work.
The question is whether the employee works in critical elements of the national infrastructure and whether his absence would likely result in the loss or compromise of that infrastructure, resulting in one or both of the following:
– Major detrimental impact on the availability, integrity or delivery of essential services – including services whose integrity, if compromised, could result in loss of life or significant casualties
– Significant impact on national security, national defense or the functioning of the state.
A a separate ‘back test’ scheme has been put in place for over 10,000 workers in the food chain industry – which means they also won’t have to isolate themselves if they get ‘pinged’.
The rule change only applies to you if your employer has received a letter from a ministry on which your name is listed.
If they have, you will be able to leave self-isolation to do critical work – other than that, you need to self-isolate as usual.
The government has said it is important for employees to continue to self-isolate if they are questioned by the NHS Test and Trace app, even if they have received both doses of the vaccine, unless employers do not have a letter from a department to which workers are specifically named.
But he also added that employers should contact the relevant government department if they have not received a letter and believe that self-isolation of some key employees, as contact would result in serious disruption of essential services.
Separate arrangements are in place for health and primary care staff.
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The list of workers who could ignore self-isolation if they are ‘pinched’ by the NHS Covid-19 application was long overdue by many, as pressure increased on the government from companies suffering from the disease. “Pingdemia”.
The government initially refused to make changes to self-isolation rules, but pressure increased from various industries struggling to stay open due to orders to quarantine their staff. .
A record number of people have been asked to self-isolate by the government application – more than 600,000 in the week until July 14, not covering the period since the restrictions were lifted – causing disruption in many industries, including retail.
According to the Department of Health and Welfare, these rule changes are only supposed to apply until August 16 – when close contacts who are fully vaccinated will be exempt from self-isolation.
The government said it will continue to engage closely on self-isolation rules and regulations with employers over the summer.
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