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A spring health update for campus

January 17, 2023

As the spring semester gets underway, UW–Madison students, faculty and staff are reminded about steps to take to keep healthy, especially from respiratory illnesses like COVID-19, seasonal flu, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). This information was also shared in a message on Dec. 8, 2022.

Get vaccinated and boosted.

  • Vaccination is a highly effective way to prevent illness or limit the severity of illness.
  • All students and employees are strongly encouraged to get vaccinated and boosted against COVID-19 and flu. If you received your last COVID-19 booster or second dose in your primary series at least two months ago, you are eligible to receive a bivalent booster. Find out when to get boosted.
  • Bivalent Pfizer COVID-19 boosters are available to students and employees at no cost at the UHS clinic at 333 E. Campus Mall. Appointments are required and can be made by logging into MyUHS.
  • Public Health Madison and Dane County (PHMDC) also maintains a list of locations offering COVID-19 and flu vaccines.
  • Students and employees who receive COVID-19 vaccination off campus are encouraged to upload their information to MyUHS.

Get tested and stay home if you’re sick.

Choose to wear a mask to protect yourself from respiratory virus infections.

  • Wearing a high-quality face mask is a simple and effective way to help prevent upper respiratory viral infections, including COVID-19, influenza and RSV.
  • While supplies remain available, the university will continue to offer no-cost masks to students and employees at the campus antigen test pick-up site.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continues to recommend a minimum of five days of isolation for anyone with COVID-19, followed by five additional days of masking around other people and when in public. Anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 is encouraged to notify their close contacts. The CDC offers additional guidance for what to do following an exposure.

The university will continue to consult public health experts and seek guidance throughout the semester and will provide additional updates as needed.