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That’s more than 5 percent of all Massachusetts residents.
Since May, concern about spreading COVID-19 has caused 387,769 individual quarantines or isolations among Massachusetts residents, according to the state’s Dec. 9 COVID-19 daily dashboard, the most recent information available.
Quarantine is for people who may have been exposed to COVID-19. Isolation is for individuals who are sure they have COVID-19.
Either way, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control urges people in quarantine or isolation to stay away from other individuals for 14 days.
As of Dec. 9, there were 12,715 Massachusetts residents undergoing monitored quarantine. This is the second-highest total number of people in quarantine at one time since data collection began May 27.
Over the same time period, there were 61,181 people in isolation, according to state data. This is the most Massachusetts residents to be in isolation at one time since May.
COVID-19 quarantines and isolations have been triggered when an infected person is discovered to have been exposed to other people. Contact tracing identifies people who came in close proximity with the sick individual and all those exposed, as well as the ill person, are encouraged to stay home.
Although March is when COVID-19 shut down the economy, the state’s data on people in quarantine or isolation goes back to May 27.
From May to Dec. 9, there have been nearly 260,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 that led to quarantine or isolation in Massachusetts. Among those individuals, there have been 10,922 deaths.
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