Information for People with COVID-19 (1-Page Summary): English/Spanish | English | Español | 简体中文 | 繁體中文 | العربية | հայերեն | អក្សរខ្មែរ | 日本語 | 한국어 | Русский | Tiếng Việt | فارسى | Tagalog
In Los Angeles County, if you have COVID-19* you are required to:
*You are considered to have COVID-19, if you have a positive diagnostic viral (swab or saliva) test for COVID-19 and/or a healthcare provider thinks that you have COVID-19.
Note: If you recently had COVID-19 (within the past 90 days) and you now have a new positive diagnostic test for COVID-19 but you don’t have symptoms, talk with your doctor to see if you have COVID-19 again.
Please help slow the spread of COVID-19 by answering if you get a call from “LA PublicHealth” or 1-833-641-0305 (see Contact Tracing).
If you tested positive but have not gotten a call yet, please call 1-833-540-0473 from 8 AM to 8:30 PM, 7 days a week.
You must stay home and separate yourself from others until your home isolation ends.
When Does My Home Isolation End?
If you had symptoms and tested positive for COVID-19 or if a healthcare provider thinks* that you have COVID-19, you must stay home until:
If you tested positive for COVID-19 but never had any symptoms:
*If a healthcare provider initially thought your symptoms were due to COVID-19 but they reassessed your diagnosis and concluded that you are not infected, you can stop isolating once 24 hours have passed since you have been fever-free without using fever-reducing medications. However, if you are under quarantine orders (because you are a close contact to a person with COVID-19) you must stay in quarantine.
**If you have a condition that severely weakens your immune system you might need to stay home for longer than 10 days. Talk to your healthcare provider for more information.
If you have a positive diagnostic (viral) test result for COVID-19 you must notify your close contacts that they could be infected and need to quarantine. Give them the home quarantine instructions. They are available in multiple languages at ph.lacounty.gov/covidquarantine. Your close contacts must quarantine even if they feel well.
A “close contact” is any of the following people who were exposed to you while you were infectious*:
*You are considered to be infectious (you can spread COVID-19 to others) from 2 days before your symptoms first appeared until your home isolation ends. If you tested positive for COVID-19 but never had any symptoms, you are considered to be infectious from 2 days before your test was taken until 10 days after your test.
For information on caring for children with symptoms of COVID-19, see Guidance for the Care of Children with Symptoms of COVID-19.
Stay in touch with your doctor and seek medical care if your symptoms get worse. If you are age 65 years or older or have an underlying medical condition it is especially important to call your doctor as you may be at a higher risk of serious illness.
People with emergency warning signs should call 911. If it’s not urgent, call your doctor before visiting. You may be able to get advice by phone.
COVID-19 and self-isolation is stressful for people. Visit the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health’s COVID-19 webpage and the 211LA webpage (211la.org/resources/subcategory/mental-health) for local resources to address mental health & wellbeing needs and concerns. In addition, guidance and resources, including information on crisis hotlines, are also available on the CDC webpage Coping with Stress.
LA County residents have free access to Headspace Plus. This is a collection of mindfulness and meditation resources in English and Spanish, as well as movement and sleep exercises to help manage stress, fear, and anxiety related to COVID-19.
If you need to speak with someone about your mental health, contact your doctor or the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health Access Center 24/7 Helpline at 1-800-854-7771. If you need help finding healthcare, call the Los Angeles County Information line at 2-1-1. This number is available 24/7.
Follow the steps below to help prevent the disease from spreading to others in your home and your community.
See cleaning instructions in Preventing the spread of respiratory illness in the home and FAQs for Caregivers.