CDC guide for reopening schools takes a political tone
The top U.S. public health agency issued a full-throated call to reopen schools in a package of new “resources and tools” posted on its website Thursday night that opened with a statement that sounded more like a political speech than a scientific document, listing numerous benefits for children of being in school and downplaying the potential health risks.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published the new guidance two weeks after President Donald Trump criticized its earlier recommendations on school reopenings as “very tough and expensive.”
“Reopening schools creates opportunity to invest in the education, wellbeing and future of one of America’s greatest assets — our children — while taking every precaution to protect students, teachers, staff and all their families,” the new opening statement said.
The package of materials began with the opening statement, titled “The Importance of Reopening America’s Schools This Fall,” and repeatedly described children as being at low risk for being infected by or transmitting the coronavirus, even though the science on both aspects is far from settled.
“The best available evidence indicates if children become infected, they are far less likely to suffer severe symptoms,” the statement said. “At the same time, the harms attributed to closed schools on the social, emotional, and behavioral health, economic well-being, and academic achievement of children, in both the short- and long-term, are well-known and significant.”
While children infected by the virus are at low risk of becoming severely ill or dying, how often they become infected and how efficiently they spread the virus to others is not definitively known. Children in middle and high schools may also be at much higher risk of both than those younger than 10, according to some recent studies.
Beyond the statement, the package included decision tools and checklists for parents, guidance on mitigation measures for schools to take and other information that some epidemiologists described as helpful.
The new statement released Thursday is a stark departure from its earlier recommendations.
That document classified as “highest risk” the full reopening of schools, and its suggestions for mitigating the risk of school reopenings would be expensive and difficult for many districts, like broad testing of students and faculty members and contact tracing to find people exposed
Parents weigh mask use for kids, B1
to an infected student or teacher.
The updated CDC guidance urged school leaders to work with local officials to make decisions about the fall, taking into account the virus’ rate of transmission in the area. It laid out a range of measures depending on the level of spread. If there’s minimal or moderate spread, it recommends social distancing, masks and increased sanitation.
But in areas with substantive and uncontrolled spread, it says, school closure is an “important consideration.” “Plans for virtual learning should be in place in the event of a school closure,” the CDC said.
Some of the nation’s largest districts have already rejected the idea of a full reopening. The Los Angeles and San Diego districts plan to keep classes online this fall, while New York City’s schools plan to offer a mix of online and in-person instruction.
Education Secretary Betsy Devos has said that students should be in the classroom every day if their families want and that any alternative fails students and taxpayers.
In many states, education leaders have said they want to return to school but lack the funding to implement safety measures. A group of state education chiefs has said U.S. schools would need more than $200 billion to prepare for a fall reopening.
Trump on Thursday said he’s asking Congress to provide $105 billion in education funding as part of the next virus relief bill. It’s meant to help schools reduce class sizes, hire teachers, rearrange spaces and provide masks, he said.
But if a local district doesn’t open, Trump said, the money should be steered to parents so they can pursue other education options.
Polls show that Americans — parents in particular — remain gravely worried about sending students back to school.
An Associated PRESS/NORC poll this week found that most Americans said they were very or extremely concerned that reopening K-12 schools for in-person instruction would contribute to spreading the virus. Altogether, 80% of respondents said they were at least somewhat concerned, including more than 3 in 5 Republicans.
Trump has made opening schools a key priority as he looks to restart the economy. Students need to return to the classroom so their parents can return to work, he has said.
Information from The Associated Press was included in this story.