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MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — It’s back to class for many kids across the state, even amid a major COVID-19 surge.
Health experts say it’s basically inevitable that children will be exposed to the Omicron variant if they’re returning to in-person learning. But there are ways you can give your child the best protection possible.
If your child is 5 or older, health experts recommend they get vaccinated. While they can still get the virus while vaccinated, it will help prevent severe symptoms or hospitalization.
If your child is too young to get vaccinated or cannot get vaccinated for other health reasons, keep them out of the classroom. Stick to remote learning for the remainder of this surge, which national health experts predict will last through February.
The Moderna vaccine study for kids 5 and under is anticipated to be done next month, beating out the timeline of the Pfizer vaccine for toddlers and babies.
If you’re sending your child back to the classroom, make sure they’re wearing a high medical grade mask.
“For families who are sending their kids to school, using a really high quality mask is best,” Dr. Hannah Lichtsinn with Hennepin Healthcare said. “That’s something in the line of a KN95 or a KF94 type mask that has a really good seal around your kid’s face and higher filtration than a typical cloth or thin paper mask.”
No Distance Learning At This Time For Minneapolis
No districts in Minnesota have announced they are staying closed or moving fully to distance learning. In Minneapolis, the public school system says it is closely monitoring omicron as students return to the classroom and will react accordingly. The school district is expected to talk about the return to the classroom amid the COVID-19 surge during an early afternoon press conference Monday.
“As we move through this surge in infections, some schools may temporarily move to distance learning and will be notified if and when that should happen,” Minneapolis school officials said in a letter to students and families.
St. Louis Park Public Schools says that despite the CDC guideline changes, it is continuing to ask students and staff that test positive to isolate at home for 10 days heading into the second half of the school year.
A switch to distance learning is a change we’re seeing happen within school districts all across the country right now. Atlanta schools are starting as remote learning, Washington, D.C. school districts are doing a delayed start to give kids and teachers time to get tested and Miami schools are requiring a negative COVID test to return to the classroom.
Meanwhile, hospitals are starting to see a concerning trend.
“What we’ve seen in other parts of the country we’re starting to see here, though I anticipate we’ll see more of as we continue our surge of Omicron, but what we’re seeing is kids under 5, so our babies especially but also our toddlers, just younger kids, getting hospitalized with COVID in a way that we’ve never seen before,” Lichtsinn said.
Source: CBS Minnesota
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