School closures have been a divisive topic since the pandemic broke out, and a new study has sparked debate over the rule of six-foot social footing and whether it can be relaxed in the classroom, showing the way children can go to school return will facilitate.
The new study, published last week in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases, suggests that public schools may be able to reopen safely for personal instruction, as long as children keep three meters between them, and with other mitigating measures, such as wearing masks.
Jill Biden and members of her husband’s management traveled in a joint campaign to reopen schools safely, while parents and educators became increasingly frustrated by the district-to-district policy.
Asked about the new report by Jake Tapper on CNN’s “State of the Union” program on Sunday, Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the country’s leading expert on infectious diseases, agreed that the study showed that three feet would be sufficient distance to transmit the virus.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not yet issued any official guidelines to shorten the recommended six-foot rule, although Dr. Fauci said the agency is studying the data.
“What the CDC wants to do is collect data, and if the data has the ability to be three feet, they will act accordingly,” said Dr. Fauci said. He added that the director of the agency, Dr Rochelle Walensky, was aware of the new research and that the CDC was also conducting its own studies. “I do not want to come before the official guidelines,” he said.
While the CDC’s social footing among students remains about six feet, the World Health Organization recommended a meter or 3.3 feet distance, and the study found that the latter was enough to limit school-related cases. The CDC recommendations call for 6-foot social footing in schools in provinces with high coronavirus transmission. CDC officials could not be reached for comment Sunday.
Some experts have said that tempering social recommendations can be an important step in getting children back into the classroom. Dr. Ashish Jha, Dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, suggested on Twitter that the CDC leadership may change, and that’s fine. Because 6 foot teachers do not protect. But that does not keep children out of school. ”
Do you want to open schools safely? Masks. Ventilation. Test. Vaccination of teachers / staff. This is the list, ”wrote Dr Jha.
The new study, published Wednesday, compares the incidence of virus cases among students and staff in Massachusetts school districts that required at least six feet of separation with those that require only three feet of distance, and found no statistically significant differences in infection rates. staff members or students.
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The researchers, who checked in their analysis for community rates of coronavirus, concluded that lower physical distance policies can be safely applied in the school environment as long as other measures such as universal masking are in place.
The authors of the study examined the infection rates among staff members and students in approximately 242 school districts in Massachusetts, with varying levels of personal education from September 24 to January 27.
Children require less hospitalization when infected with the coronavirus, and children under 10 are less likely to become infected than teenagers. But the true incidence of infections may not be known because children and adolescents are much less likely than adults to develop serious illnesses and that they are less likely to be tested.