New York schools no longer have to perform formal contact tracing when students or staff have COVID or are exposed to someone who has.
They must, however, have a mechanism in place to alert parents and guardians of students who may have been exposed to the virus.
“Schools should at least notify parents and guardians of affected students,” according to a New York State Health Department FAQ posted over the weekend.
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Meanwhile, Governor Kathy Hochul said Friday that more test kits would be on their way to school districts. Daycare centers would also undergo testing this week, state officials said.
“We give them test kits at school, they test at home, they are negative, they are back in school,” the governor said. “Keeping kids in school, #1 priority, #1 priority.”
County health departments across the state are now developing policies and best practices with their school districts. The state has given local health departments the authority to coordinate and establish additional guidelines for school districts within their jurisdictions.
Meanwhile, principals were still evaluating changes to contact tracing rules on Friday.
School leaders want change
Many school districts had been pushing for major changes in contact tracing protocols.
The Lower Hudson Council of School Superintendents sent a letter Thursday to the state’s Health Commissioner, Dr. Mary Bassett, urging the state to focus on weekly COVID testing using PCR testing for students and the staff ; developing measures for the fall of indoor masks; and increase mental health services for students.
The letter also said the state should allow schools to stop contact tracing because COVID-19 cases are rarely transmitted to the school.
“There is limited evidence to suggest that close contact with the school translates into positive cases,” says the letter, signed by Eric Byrne, Chairman of the Board of Superintendents and Superintendent of the Town of Rye.
Superintendents said their goal is to keep students in school, protect everyone’s health and “provide a pathway to a normalized school experience for students.”
The letter from the Board of Superintendents called on the state to:
- assist school districts in administering weekly tests to all consenting students and staff;
- easing the state’s domestic mask mandate in schools with low positivity rates;
- increase funding for student mental health services, particularly for at-risk students and those living in poverty;
- expand school-based vaccination and booster clinics, especially in communities that need them;
- and implement statewide COVID policies and protocols, instead of leaving decisions to county health departments.
“These are pragmatic suggestions from 78 school districts that have extensive experience in handling this pandemic,” Byrne said. “We want to keep students and faculty safe and keep everyone in schools for full-time in-person learning. And mental health is very important.”
How a County Acts
In Rockland, county spokesman John Lyon said Friday that schools no longer have to contact the local health department about COVID cases detected on their campuses.
“The RCDOH has encouraged schools to contact research and self-notify contacts to refer them to the most recent guidance available,” Lyon said.
Schools would continue to take the initiative to notify parents of a child’s exposure to COVID.
Rockland health officials, in conjunction with the state’s contact tracer team, would continue to assist with case investigations as much as they could, Lyon said.
Last week, officials in Rockland and Putnam counties announced last week that they could not track contact tracing. Both counties have launched portals with do-it-yourself attestation letters for people who test positive for the virus and need documents for work, school or benefits.
On Tuesday, New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Mary Bassett said the state would also end its contact tracing efforts and allow New Yorkers direct access to COVID isolation forms.
While Hochul welcomed signs of declining COVID cases, state health departments and hospitals report that their resources have been stretched by the surge in virus cases during the omicron outbreak.
In the southern region of the state, COVID cases and hospitalizations began to decline this week. Other parts of the state have yet to see a change in the outbreak.
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