Corona: Do I get sick leave in quarantine or isolation?

Created: 11/29/2022, 13:00

By: Anna Heyers

In many companies, the increasing incidences are noticeable due to a lack of staff.

But when is isolation necessary and what is important in the case of sick leave?

The Infection Protection Act was only recently adapted again for autumn and winter.

The new rules should initially apply until April 7, 2023.

But what is changing now for working people - especially in the federal states where quarantine and isolation have been abolished?

For example, when does the doctor give you a sick note with a certificate of incapacity for work (AU)?

Going to work despite a confirmed corona infection?

In some federal states this is now possible with a face mask.

© Lars Zahner/Imago

Corona: Do I get sick leave for voluntary quarantine or isolation?

First of all, it is not necessarily a matter of voluntariness, but of being ill.

According to the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KBV), if there are symptoms such as a runny nose, fever or a slight sore throat, the doctor may issue a certificate of incapacity for work.

The employee can then use this to report sick to their employer.

decision of the states

In general, however, the rules for quarantine and isolation are adopted by the federal states themselves.

This means that the rules can differ from each other in Hamburg, Thuringia and Bavaria.

An overview of which rules apply to which federal state can be found on the relevant website of the federal government.

However, if the employee is symptom-free, the doctor is usually not allowed to issue an AU certificate.

In this case, the continued payment of wages by the employer is secured through compensation under the Infection Protection Act.

To do this, the patient submits the official notification of the order for quarantine to the employer.

However, the right to compensation does not apply to unvaccinated people.

You can find out here whether employees have to work in quarantine or not.

Important here: Whether a sick leave is issued is always a decision on a case-by-case basis.

If you have no symptoms, but a positive test, you might be able to continue working in the home office without an AU.

With a job in elderly or nursing care or childcare, things may look different.

When should you take sick leave?

In any case, health experts advise caution.

Anyone who has been infected but still feels well can continue to work from home – where possible and with the approval of their employer.

Important here: Be honest with yourself!

Whether Corona or another illness: Anyone who ignores their discomfort with a “it’s not that bad, that’s fine” can also procrastinate such an illness – and may be absent for a longer period of time.

With Corona, the following still applies: Even without symptoms, the infected person is potentially contagious.

The KBV therefore advises issuing an AU certificate even if the patient has to leave their home for their professional activity.

Some employers accept a positive PCR test as sick leave, but it is always safer to try to get a certificate - especially if you have symptoms.

Special regulation: Sick leave over the phone

Actually, sick people have to go to the doctor in person and make representations in order to get an AU.

According to the federal government, however, the telephone sick leave was extended until March 31st.

Insured persons who suffer from mild respiratory diseases can be given sick leave for up to seven days over the phone – without having to go to the doctor in person.

The insurance card can be submitted later.

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Abolition of quarantine in several federal states

There is currently a nationwide obligation for people infected with corona to isolate themselves for five days.

However, some federal states, including Schleswig-Holstein and Baden-Württemberg, have chosen a different path: the obligation to isolate was abolished here on November 17th.

Instead of having to stay at home, people who test positive should wear a mask indoors for five days outside their own home.

We have to get back to normal and deal with Corona and live like we do with other infectious diseases.

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Stephan Hofmeister, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians

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Andreas Gassen, CEO of the KBV, finds this step only logical: "The advance of the four countries makes sense against the background of the current corona situation." After all, there are facilities where there is a greater risk (e.g. hospitals, doctor's good hygiene concepts are now in place.

He is of the opinion that people who feel healthy despite Corona “can go to work – and then wear a mask, for example”.

Yes or no - with Corona to work?

An opinion that Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach does not like to agree with.

According to the German Press Agency (dpa), he spoke of a mistake at the beginning of November and warned of a “patchwork” with different isolation rules in the federal states.

"There is also no medical reason to forgo the obligation to isolate now," said the SPD politician.

There are around 1,000 deaths from Covid per week, one is facing a "probably severe winter wave" and is "on the eve of a more contagious variant".

It is therefore not really responsible to take away the obligation to isolate.

He added that the workplace must remain safe and that people who are infected must be prevented from being pushed to work.

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This is where employers come into play.

They are obliged to draw up hygiene concepts and implement protective measures.

This also includes the measures that have proven to be successful so far:

• Implementation of the AHA+L rule in the workplace

• Reduction of operational personal contact (e.g. by reducing the number of employees in closed work and break rooms)

• Offer of home office (where possible)

• Trial offers for employees who work in presence

• Masks are mandatory where technical and organizational measures to protect against infection alone are not sufficient

Difference: isolation and quarantine

Both isolation (or confinement) and quarantine are designed to prevent the spread of a pathogen by reducing contacts.

The isolation is ordered by the authorities and applies to people with a confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection.

It can be done at home or, in severe cases, in the hospital.

People in quarantine are suspected of being infected with the corona virus.

It is limited in time and usually applies to close contacts of confirmed patients.

The current recommendations on isolation and quarantine can be found, for example, on the homepage of the Federal Government’s Together Against Corona page.