Back to Work Interim Toolkit
Ver 1.3
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR STAFF THAT HAVE RECENTLY TRAVELED DOMESTICALLY
August 6 , 2020
The CDC has not published any recommendations on domestic travel and the return to work thereafter . Some states , have public health recommendations / regulations that require a person to self quarantine for 14 days if moving from a high transmission area to a high or low transmission area . For example , Maine .
PDA recommends adding a screening question about being present in large crowds and / or traveling domestically within the last two weeks .
PDA continues to monitor other states for state or local requirements on a weekly basis .
UPDATED
The PA Department of Health recently “ recommended ” that anyone entering PA from one of 18 states that are considered Covid “ hot spots ” self-quarantine for 14 days . This includes both visitors to PA from those states as well as PA residents who travel to those states and return . Moreover , the 14 day quarantine is “ recommended ” regardless of whether the person is symptomatic or even if the person has a negative Covid test upon returning . This can seem even more complicated because the FAQs the PA DOH posted to explain the recommendation actually state that an employer would not necessarily be prohibited from requiring an employee who ’ d visited one of those states to report to work upon return instead of quarantining . The DOH travel information can be found here : https :// www . health . pa . gov / topics / disease / coronavirus / Pages / Travelers . aspx
Many dentists have asked if an employee of a dental practice in PA travels to one of those states listed for non-essential , personal reasons , and he / she is aware of the quarantine recommendation prior to departure , would the employer be required to provide paid leave to that employee when he / she returns ?
The answer is that it ’ s possible , but not probable . If :
1 . The employee is subject to a federal , state , or local quarantine or isolation order related to COVID-19 ; or 2 . The employee has been advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine due to concerns related to
COVID-19 ; or
3 . The employee is experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 and seeking a medical diagnosis , then the employee is entitled to up to 80 hours of paid leave under FFCRA . But only if the requirements are met . A recommendation is not an order , typically , and there needs to be an enforceable federal , state or local order for # 1 above to apply . That leaves qualifying for paid leave contingent on the employee showing a health care provider directed him / her to self-quarantine , or that he / she has symptoms and is seeking a diagnosis . But , those would apply regardless of whether or not the employee had traveled to a hot spot . An employee is not entitled to demand paid leave to quarantine because he / she is worried . So , if an employee travels to a hot spot state , is asymptomatic upon return and chooses to follow the DOH quarantine recommendation , the employee would not appear to qualify for paid leave under any of the three criteria above .
A practice can – if it chooses – maintain a policy that says if an employee travels to a hotspot outside of work activities ( and the employee does not meet any of the above criteria ), the employee must quarantine . It is possible that employee may be then be entitled to unemployment compensation if the employee is functionally prevented from coming into work by the practice ’ s policy . The same applies to any potential additional paid leave beyond the 80 hours , should the employer qualify . To view additional ADA resources on this topic , click here .
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EMPLOYMENT / HR ISSUES
Recommendations for Staff That Have Recently Traveled Domestically