An image from Tuesday morning's press conference. The hand icons are reporters waiting to ask questions.
HARTFORD — State officials held a press conference Tuesday with a clear message: despite soaring COVID-19 rates, kids should remain in school, learning face to face (or more accurately, face covering to face covering).
“Today, despite the unprecedented spread of the Omicron variant that we are experiencing, we’re still more committed than ever to keeping our schools open,” said Josh Geballe, the chief operating officer in Gov. Ned Lamont’s administration.
In-person learning is better for academics, mental health, and physical well being, officials stressed during the roughly 60-minute press conference.
But it’s a tough time for schools and parents right now.
Lamont said preliminary info Tuesday showed the state’s COVID-19 positivity test rate at 24 percent — a record breaker for the state. Locally, school districts are having a heck of a time with transportation due to bus drivers calling out for COVID-19 related reasons.
Ansonia Public Schools, after returning from winter break Monday, opted to close school for the rest of the week because 25 percent of the staff wasn’t there, officials said. The missed days will be tacked on to the end of the school year. As it stands, even if Ansonia went to remote learning, those days would not count toward the state’s required 180-day minimum requirement, barring intervention from the governor or the state legislature.
During Tuesday’s press conferences, officials said there are no immediate plans for the state to swoop in and to help with things like transportation. Geballe, prompted by a question about whether the state’s National Guard members could start driving buses, said the Guard is already committed to helping in other ways, such as distributing N‑95 masks and supporting vaccination events.
There are also no plans to require temperature checks outside schools and N‑95 mask mandates, additional steps requested by the state’s teachers union Monday, according to media reports. State officials said they weren’t aware of N‑95 masks being fitted for kids — and temperature checks outside buildings would bog down schools.
But, Lamont pointed out schools have already shown to be places where COVID-19 is somewhat controllable, thanks to mask mandates and social distancing happening within buildings. He urged people to get fully vaccinated, as numerous studies and data are showing that vaccinations prevent people from getting seriously ill from COVID-19. As of Monday afternoon, roughly 68 percent of the 1,452 people in Connecticut hospitals were either not vaccinated or not fully vaccinated.
Lamont also said the state’s plans to distribute at-home test kits — initially delayed after a deal fell through with a supplier — is finally gaining steam, with 500,000 at-home test kits (which are really only to be used if you feel symptoms and can’t schedule the more reliable deep nose scrape), delivered over the weekend, though local officials pointed out the supply of tests distributed came nowhere near the demand.
The state said another 2 million test kits are on the way. Officials said they will never have enough tests to supply every person in Connecticut, and that they see the effort as a “bridge” to a federal effort to get more at-home test kits to people.
The state is also advising people to use N‑95 masks, which are more protective than cloth masks, especially when it comes to the Omicron variant: but there’s no plans to mandate the use of the better masks.
Tuesday’s press conference was also held to go over new COVID-19 guidance for schools, which states (according to state Health Department Commissioner Manisha Juthani):
* Anyone who feels sick should stay home and get tested (though locally tests are hard to come by)
* Vaccinated children should go to school even if they had a COVID-19 exposure outside of school. The child should be monitored for symptoms, and remain masked, as required, in school.
* Unvaccinated or partially vaccinated children who had a COVID-19 exposure outside of school should stay out of school for five days and quarantine and then return to school wearing a mask.
* If cases happen within a classroom, parents need to be notified by the school district.
This story continues after the embedded podcast.
Unedited audio from the press conference is available above. Press play to listen.
THE NEW CDC GUIDANCE
Here is the recently revised guidance directly from the CDC website:
“Given what we currently know about COVID-19 and the Omicron variant, CDC is shortening the recommended time for isolation for the public. People with COVID-19 should isolate for 5 days and if they are asymptomatic or their symptoms are resolving (without fever for 24 hours), follow that by 5 days of wearing a mask when around others to minimize the risk of infecting people they encounter. The change is motivated by science demonstrating that the majority of SARS-CoV‑2 transmission occurs early in the course of illness, generally in the 1 – 2 days prior to onset of symptoms and the 2 – 3 days after.
Additionally, CDC is updating the recommended quarantine period for anyone in the general public who is exposed to COVID-19. For people who are unvaccinated or are more than six months out from their second mRNA dose (or more than 2 months after the J&J vaccine) and not yet boosted, CDC now recommends quarantine for 5 days followed by strict mask use for an additional 5 days. Alternatively, if a 5‑day quarantine is not feasible, it is imperative that an exposed person wear a well-fitting mask at all times when around others for 10 days after exposure. Individuals who have received their booster shot do not need to quarantine following an exposure, but should wear a mask for 10 days after the exposure. For all those exposed, best practice would also include a test for SARS-CoV‑2 at day 5 after exposure. If symptoms occur, individuals should immediately quarantine until a negative test confirms symptoms are not attributable to COVID-19.
Isolation relates to behavior after a confirmed infection. Isolation for 5 days followed by wearing a well-fitting mask will minimize the risk of spreading the virus to others. Quarantine refers to the time following exposure to the virus or close contact with someone known to have COVID-19. Both updates come as the Omicron variant continues to spread throughout the U.S. and reflects the current science on when and for how long a person is maximally infectious. These recommendations do not supersede state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules, and regulations, nor do they apply to healthcare workers for whom CDC has updated guidance.
Data from South Africa and the United Kingdom demonstrate that vaccine effectiveness against infection for two doses of an mRNA vaccine is approximately 35%. A COVID-19 vaccine booster dose restores vaccine effectiveness against infection to 75%. COVID-19 vaccination decreases the risk of severe disease, hospitalization, and death from COVID-19. CDC strongly encourages COVID-19 vaccination for everyone 5 and older and boosters for everyone 16 and older. Vaccination is the best way to protect yourself and reduce the impact of COVID-19 on our communities.”
