 Previously, CDC recommended that two cases associated
with a school would constitute an outbreak. The new national
recommendation that Illinois is adopting defines a school outbreak
as either (1) multiple cases comprising at least 10% of students,
teachers, or staff within a core group or (2) at least three cases
within a specified core group. A core group means only those
individuals who were together during an exposure period. For
example, this could be limited to a classroom, a sports team,
before/after school care, performing arts, or other groups and
likely does not apply to the entire school population.
More information about school outbreaks, exclusion, guidance, and
Frequently Asked Questions can be found on the IDPH website on a new
COVID-19 Youth and School Resources page, including youth
vaccination rates by county, youth cases over time, and youth
emergency department visits.
https://dph.illinois.gov/covid19/youth-school.html.
“In an effort to more confidently establish whether transmission of
COVID-19 occurred in school versus another location, IDPH is
following CDC’s recommendations and adopting Council of State and
Territorial Epidemiologists’ guidance, which updates what is
considered to be a school-associated outbreak,” said IDPH Director
Dr. Ngozi Ezike. “This change in criteria will continue to identify
outbreaks and help prevent further spread, but also help rule out
outbreaks that are not associated with the school.”
To be considered part of an outbreak in a school, cases must meet
the criteria for a probable or confirmed school-associated case with
a positive test result, or the start of symptoms within 14 days of
each other. These individuals are identified to be close contacts
with each other while in the school setting and not another setting
outside of school. The cases must also be epidemiologically linked
to the school setting or extracurricular activity, meaning they were
at the same place at the same time.
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Masks continue to be required to be worn in schools
by students, staff, and visitors to help protect the health of those
in schools and prevent further transmission in the community among
vulnerable populations.
More information about the importance of using layered prevention
strategies, including universal masking, to stop the spread and
minimize disruptions to school operations for safe in-person
education can be found in three new studies. These studies found
that school districts without a universal masking policy in place
were more likely to have COVID-19 outbreaks. Nationwide, counties
without masking requirements saw the number of pediatric COVID-19
cases increase nearly twice as quickly during this same period.
Masking also helps keep students in school. In Illinois, a student
who was within 3-6 feet of a case in a classroom setting is not
considered a close contact if both the case and close contact were
consistently masked for the entire exposure period.
IDPH recommends vaccination for individuals 12 years and older,
including students. School personnel are required to be fully
vaccinated or tested at least weekly for COVID-19, per Executive
Order.
IDPH has also teamed up with SHIELD Illinois to provide free
COVID-19 testing to all K-12 public schools across Illinois outside
of Chicago. As an alternative to exclusion from school, unvaccinated
students and staff who have been identified as a close contact of a
positive COVID-19 case now have the option of a Test-to-Stay
protocol, as long as both the case and contact were masked during
the exposure. Close contacts must be tested on days 1, 3, 5, and 7
after exposure. As long as close contacts remain negative, they are
allowed to remain in school. Participation in weekly screening
testing at school is strongly encouraged as an added layered
mitigation strategy and to support implementation of Test-to-Stay.
[Illinois Office of Communication and
Information]
Association
Between K–12 School Mask Policies and School-Associated COVID-19
Outbreaks — Maricopa and Pima Counties, Arizona, July–August
2021;
Pediatric COVID-19 Cases in Counties With and Without School Mask
Requirements;
COVID-19–Related School Closures and Learning Modality Changes —
United States |
