COVID-19 is still affecting our lives

Dear Colleagues,

It has been over four years since the COVID-19 pandemic has started, and while nearly all of us have returned to in-person work and activities, COVID-19 is still having an impact on our lives in a much different form than at the beginning. ANR Risk & Safety is continuing our efforts to prioritize the health and safety of the ANR community, and we are issuing this reminder regarding the importance of taking proactive measures if you are feeling unwell.

We are still monitoring the COVID-19 cases notified by the employees who report their positive cases. To help us protect each other, we ask you to please submit a Screening Report Survey if you have tested positive for COVID-19. The Survey is checked daily by our team, and one of our team members will reach out to gather more information, including the date of the symptom start, the last date of in-person presence at your respective office or event, and close contacts if there are any. We ask that you complete the questionnaire honestly.

Per Cal/OSHA Regulations, employers are still required to notify all employees who had close contact with a COVID-19 case. Your survey will help us identify the close contacts and reach out to those who may be impacted as soon as possible. In addition, if you require assistance with COVID notifications for non-ANR affiliated attendees at a recent event, please reach out to Rachelle Ghadamy (rghadamy@ucanr.edu) at Risk & Safety, and we will provide a letter draft to share with everyone. We will also provide a letter if we determine that a group notification would be necessary.

We are continuing to provide masks, including N95, and COVID tests if you are experiencing symptoms or suspecting that you may have COVID-19. Please reach out to Duwon Choi (dwchoi@ucanr.edu) at Risk & Safety if you need them for yourself, your location, or upcoming events.

Per CDPH recommendations, we ask that you stay home if you are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms to prevent the spread. You are welcome to use your sick days or coordinate with your supervisor to work remotely until your symptoms improve. You are advised to stay remote until you have not had a fever for 24 hours without using fever-reducing medication AND other COVID-19 symptoms are mild and improving. You will be required to wear a mask until your Day 10 (Day 0 is the start of your symptoms or your testing positive, whichever one was sooner). You may remove your mask when you have two sequential negative tests at least one day apart.

We strongly recommend everyone to receive booster shots. CDC recommends that everyone ages six months and older get the 2024-2025 vaccine. This includes people who received a COVID-19 vaccine before and people who have had COVID-19. Vaccine protection decreases over time, and the updated vaccine will give you the best protection from the currently circulating strains. One dose of 2024-2024 Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech or Novavax COVID-19 vaccine is recommended. If you are immunocompromised or have other health conditions, consult your physician.

Even though many of the COVID-19 preventative measures have been eased, it's crucial that we remain vigilant and considerate of one another's well-being. Please help us create a safer, healthier workplace environment for everyone.

For more information on ANR's COVID-19 Guidelines, please visit ANR EH&S COVID-19 page.

Duwon Choi
Environmental Health & Safety Specialist
ANR Risk and Safety

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