(Reuters) -The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is expected to ease its guidelines to control the spread of COVID-19, including in schools as soon as this week, CNN reported on Wednesday, citing sources familiar with the plan.

The updated guidelines are expected to ease quarantine requirements for people exposed to the virus and would no longer recommend maintaining a six-feet distance at schools, according to the report.

Currently, the agency requires people exposed to COVID and those not up to date on their vaccinations to stay at home and quarantine for at least five full days.

The new guidelines would not require them to stay at home but instead to wear a mask and test at least five days after exposure, according to the CNN report.

The agency would also remove a recommendation called ‘test to stay’ the report said. Test to stay involves frequent testing after close contact with a COVID-19 patient and allows for some students and teachers who do not test positive for COVID to continue in-person learning.

The CDC is always evaluating its guidance “as science changes and will update the public as it occurs,” a spokesperson for the agency told Reuters.

(Reporting by Amruta Khandekar; Editing by Maju Samuel)

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