New York State to Hand Out Millions of Covid Tests for School Kids
New York State to Hand Out Millions of Covid Tests for School Kids
(Bloomberg) -- New York state plans to send millions of Covid testing kits to school districts to ensure children can attend in person amid the latest wave of the coronavirus pandemic.
The state expects to distribute 3 million to 3.5 million take-home kits, each containing two Covid tests, with priority given to districts that have the highest transmission rates, New York officials said Monday. About 2 million kits are going to schools in New York City.
“We want to make sure that these schools stay open,” Governor Kathy Hochul said during a news conference in Albany, citing the devastating impact of school closures on children’s ability to learn and their mental health.
Officials in New York and other states are wary of closing schools and resuming remote learning, even amid the new omicron wave of Covid-19, because students are falling behind educationally and socially. The shutdowns also made it hard for businesses to reopen because parents had to stay home to supervise online classes.
“We understand the huge cost” of remote schooling, state Health Commissioner Dr. Mary Bassett said. “A top priority is keeping children in school. That’s what the ‘test to stay’ policy is designed to enhance.”
Students are scheduled to return to classes Jan. 3 after their holiday break. Hochul said it’s still possible the state could reverse course and order closures if the “worst-case scenario” occurs, but she wouldn’t define what metrics the state would use to make that decision. “There’s not a hard, fast number,” Hochul said.
The plan faces what Bassett characterized as “disappointingly low” vaccination rates among children ages 5-11, only 16.4% of whom are fully vaccinated. The shots aren’t currently authorized for children under age 5. The testing program is open to kids of all ages, according to the governor’s office.
In the last month, the state has seen a small but growing number of children hospitalized with Covid. In the week that ended on Dec. 11, there were 70 children hospitalized statewide, 22 of them in New York City, according to Bassett. By Dec. 23, the state counted 184 pediatric hospitalizations, 109 of them in New York City.
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