US CDC recommends reopening schools with masks and rigid health protocols

(Reuters) – The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday released new guidelines for reopening U.S. schools, recommending universal mask wear and physical distancing as key COVID-19 mitigation strategies to bring back quickly children in class.

The guidelines here, which also emphasize the need for clean facilities, personal hygiene, and contact tracing, aim to give school districts a roadmap to bring the nation’s 55 million public school students back to schools. classrooms without triggering COVID-19 epidemics.

“We believe that with the strategies that we have put forward, there will be no transmission in schools if they are followed,” CDC director Rochelle Walensky told reporters, noting that the CDC did not impose the reopening of schools.

The agency also said that reopening schools should not be made conditional on teachers having access to COVID-19 vaccines, but strongly recommended that U.S. states prioritize teachers and school staff for immunizations.

President Joe Biden has vowed to reopen most K-8 schools within 100 days of taking office on Jan.20. He praised the CDC’s advice on Friday and highlighted issues stemming from the continued school closures, including children’s mental health issues and the exodus of parents from the workforce.

“We sacrificed so much last year. But science tells us that if we support our children, educators and communities with the resources they need, we can get children back to school safely in more parts of the country sooner, ”Biden said. in a press release.

According to the Center for Reinventing Public Education, which surveyed 477 of the country’s nearly 13,000 school districts, only 44% of US school districts offered fully in-person learning in December and 31% all operated remotely. Other districts have used a blended learning model, in which students attend some school days in person and others virtually.

The reopening of schools has sparked labor disputes between teachers’ unions, who fear for the safety of their members, and school districts in major US cities. In Chicago this week, the teachers’ union and the district reached an agreement on a safety plan after months of negotiations involving threats of strike action.

The American Federation of Teachers, which has about 1.7 million members, on Friday praised the CDC’s advice for being based on “facts and evidence.”

“We urge the CDC to remain flexible as more data comes to light. The guidance is informative at this time, but this disease is not static, ”AFT President Randi Weingarten said in a statement.

FLEXIBLE APPROACH

CDC’s gradual mitigation strategy is adaptable based on the level of COVID-19 transmission in a school community.

In areas where the positive COVID-19 test rate is less than 5% and there have been fewer than nine new cases per 100,000 in the past seven days, schools can fully reopen and safely relax measures social distancing as long as masks are worn, Walensky said. In areas of higher transmission, the agency calls for a 1.83 m separation in classrooms and weekly testing of students, teachers and staff.

Elementary students should learn in person at least part-time, even in areas of high transmission, according to the guidelines.

Recent studies have shown that face-to-face learning has not been associated with increased community transmission, particularly in elementary schools.

Republican House Leader Kevin McCarthy on Friday criticized the reopening guidelines as not being bold enough to ensure students return to classrooms quickly.

“Families and students deserve better. They need irrefutable guarantees that their children will be able to return to the classroom environment that offers the best model of education, ”McCarthy said in a statement.

United States House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, said on Friday that House committees were working to pass the $ 1.9 trillion US Biden bailout bill, which includes a $ 130 billion investment that could help schools follow CDC protocols, to help schools apply CDC guidelines.

“Without strong congressional assistance, our schools cannot afford to implement science-based safety precautions,” Pelosi said in a statement.