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State health officials recommend that schools, like local communities, implement various COVID-19 prevention strategies depending on the level of transmission in their area this fall.
When levels of community transmission are moderate to high, school districts should consider implementing more strategies to curb the spread of the coronavirus, especially if vaccination rates are low in a given community.
On Wednesday, August 4, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services released updated recommendations to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 in schools and reduce disruption to in-person learning.
The changes, which also included listing prevention strategies in order of effectiveness, were made to align with the latest CDC guidelines.
“We are committed to ensuring the safety of Michigan students and educators in the classroom, including those who may not yet be vaccinated,” said Dr Joneigh Khaldun, MDHHS Medical Director and Chief Health Assistant. , in a prepared statement.
“The MDHHS publishes these guidelines to help protect Michiganders of all ages. We continue to urge all eligible residents to get the safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine as soon as possible, because it is our best defense against the virus and how we will end this pandemic. “
These prevention strategies, in order, include:
- Promote immunization for eligible staff and students.
- Recommend universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students and visitors, regardless of their immunization status. In addition, the CDC requires that all people wear masks on public transportation, including school buses.
- Practice physical distancing. Students should maintain at least 3 feet of separation in classrooms, combined with masking inside.
- Perform tests to identify infected people, including those who have no symptoms.
- Provide adequate ventilation by opening multiple doors and windows, using child-safe fans, and making modifications to HVAC or air filtration systems.
- Promote hand washing and cover coughs and sneezes.
- Encourage students and staff to stay home when they are sick and get tested if they are showing symptoms of COVID-19 or have come into close contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19.
- Perform contact tracing.
- Clean and disinfect surfaces at least once a day.
When determining which prevention strategies to implement, school administrators should work with their local public health officials. Together, they should assess the level of community transmission of COVID-19, as well as the immunization coverage of students, teachers and staff, and trends of COVID-19 within the school or surrounding community.
As of Monday, August 2, more than 30 counties in Michigan were reporting seven-day COVID-19 transmission levels deemed “high” or “substantial,” according to CDC data. Federal health officials recommend that all individuals wear masks indoors, regardless of vaccination status, when transmission exceeds a moderate level.
Below is a map showing the transmission level for each county in Michigan based on CDC standards, using data as of Tuesday, July 27. Red and orange counties indicate high and substantial transmission, while yellow indicates moderate transmission and blue indicates low transmission.
Last month, the state’s COVID-19 prevention recommendations for schools met with opposition from the Great Lakes Education Project school choice group, whose executive director Beth DeShone said, “Whitmer passed the last year of telling our kids what they can do, when they can do it. her, and what they need to wear – with no scientific evidence to back it up. Now she wants to control the children until 2022. Parents have had enough.
As of Tuesday, August 3, about 58.5% of the population aged 12 and over had received at least one dose of the vaccine, and 54.1% were fully immunized. Specifically, about 32.2% of 12 to 15 year olds are at least partially vaccinated, as are 42.1% of 16 to 19 year olds.
For full state school boards, visit Michigan.gov, here.
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