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- CDC officials advise school students to remain 3 feet apart in new guidelines.
- Cohorting and universal mask wearing are also recommended.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released new guidelines on how children should be socially distancing upon returning to classrooms.
Contingent upon universal mask-wearing, children back in school are recommended to remain at least 3 feet apart.
“CDC is committed to leading with science and updating our guidance as new evidence emerges,” said CDC Director Rochelle P. Walensky. “Safe in-person instruction gives our kids access to critical social and mental health services that prepare them for the future, in addition to the education they need to succeed. These updated recommendations provide the evidence-based roadmap to help schools reopen safely, and remain open, for in-person instruction.”
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Younger children, who remain the least vulnerable to a severe COVID-19 infection, must remain 3 feet apart while in classrooms.
Older school children, such as those in middle and high schools, can also reduce their social distancing to 3 feet.
Schools located in communities with high transmission and limited cohorting options — a containment strategy in which students are relegated into the same group of peers and staff — should continue to follow the original guidelines and remain 6 feet apart.
This strategy is a broader part of the CDC’s K-12 plan to safely reopen schools as the pandemic continues.
Outlined in the official manual is increased COVID-19 testing and surveillance among students and staff to further mitigate the chances of an outbreak, along with administering vaccine allocations to teachers and school staff.
President Biden has earlier directed states to prioritize teacher and school staff as front line workers, giving them earlier access to vaccination.
Additionally, a 6-foot distance between students and staff should be adhered to between adults and students in school buildings and facilities, when masks can’t be worn, such as during eating or extracurriculars like sports or music recitals and community settings outside of the classroom.
The latter is especially important to ensure students and staff in designated cohorts do not contract COVID-19 from an external source.
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