In The News: Kids Are Going Back to School. How Do We Keep Them Safe?

Is it safe to send kids back to school with the Delta variant? While schools have not been major superspreaders of the virus, public health guidelines vary depending on COVID cases in each state. Read on for answers to the most common questions related to Fall 2021 and the current state of the pandemic.

“As the Delta variant rages and vaccination rates remain low in many parts of the United States, worried parents have one pressing question: How do I send my child back to school safely during a pandemic? Next week, a number of school districts in the South where case counts for Covid-19 are on the rise, including several in Alabama and Georgia, will begin the 2021-22 school year. Even more schools in Covid hot spots around the country, including districts in Texas, Louisiana and Florida, will welcome students the following week.” “While much of the public health conversation has been focused on booster shots and breakthrough infections, parents are frustrated at the lack of advice for families, particularly those with children under 12 years old, who are not yet eligible for a Covid vaccine. On social media and at school-board meetings, parents say they face an impossible choice: send kids to school and risk a Covid-19 infection, or keep kids home and jeopardize their mental health and educational development.”

Read this full article in the New York Times: ‘Kids Are Going Back to School. How Do We Keep Them Safe?’