Kids Exposed to COVID-19 Can Stay in Class with In-School Testing, CDC Says
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Kids who are exposed to COVID-19 can stay in class as long as they are tested in schools, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a news release on Friday.
"Test-to-Stay is another valuable tool in a layered prevention strategy that includes promoting vaccination of eligible students and staff, requiring everyone age 2 and older wear a mask inside schools and facilities, keeping at least 3 feet of distance between students, screening testing, ventilation, handwashing, and staying home when sick," the news release reads.
The Test-to-Stay initiative was put into motion by the CDC to help "minimize absenteeism and learning loss which can occur during traditional quarantine at home."
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"These studies demonstrate that test-to-stay works to keep unvaccinated children in school safely," CDC Director Rochelle Walensky told reporters Friday, per The Washington Post, calling it a "promising and now proven practice."
According to the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) released by the CDC on Friday, the Test-to-Stay initiative "does not appear to increase transmission risk in public schools and might greatly reduce loss of in-person school days"; however, some schools may not have the resources required to implement the program.
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The CDC recommends that children ages 5 and over get the COVID-19 vaccine to protect themselves from the virus. The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine is currently the only vaccine approved for kids ages 5-17. Anyone over the age of 16 can get a COVID booster shot.
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Adults over the age of 18 can choose either the Pfizer, Moderna, or Johnson & Johnson vaccine; however, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommended to the CDC on Thursday that adults choose either Pfizer or Moderna after the CDC linked 54 confirmed cases of people developing blood counts with low platelet levels – a rare condition called Thrombosis with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome (TTS) – to the J&J shot.
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