Some schools in Erie County are poised to begin a program next week aimed at keeping children who would otherwise have to quarantine because of Covid-19 in school.
Erie County Health Department officials met with more than 150 administrators, superintendents and nurses from public, charter and private schools Friday afternoon to explain how the "test-to-stay" program will work.
Health Commissioner Dr. Gale Burstein announced Tuesday that Erie County will now work with schools throughout the county to implement a Covid-19-testing program to keep children who might have been exposed to Covid-19 from being sent home to quarantine.
The program allows unvaccinated students who are identified as close contacts of someone who has tested positive to take a rapid test every morning before school during the five-day quarantine period. If the student tests negative, he or she can remain in school. If the test is positive, the child continues the quarantine at home.
Parents and educators have been pushing for the program for months because of the high number of children who have been quarantined and missed school – some multiple times – and who never got sick.
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"We have to make sure schools are open five days a week and we pave the way to make sure every healthy child can be in school," said Hamburg Superintendent Michael Cornell, president of the Erie Niagara School Superintendents Association.
Both Gov. Kathy Hochul and County Executive Mark Poloncarz have announced that the state would provide more rapid tests for schools to move the test-to-stay program forward, as well providing them to counties to distribute to the general public.
School leaders were to meet with county officials Wednesday, but the meeting was canceled and rescheduled to Friday after the New York State Health Department issued updated guidance on quarantining.
"Because it's been difficult enough to get to this point, I suspect we’ll have to revisit some of theses nuances if they pose problems once we get it up and running," Cornell said.
Parents must give permission for their children to be tested. The test-to-stay program is for students who are not fully vaccinated, since vaccinated people do not have to quarantine unless they develop symptoms.
As of Monday, 38.7% of children up to age 19 in Erie County had received at least one dose of vaccine, according to provisional data released by the county.
“The Test to Stay program has many moving pieces, and schools will have substantial day-to-day responsibility, as they are the ones who are identifying school-based contacts, following the testing protocol, and reporting results to NYSDOH and ECDOH,” Erie County Health Commissioner of Health Dr. Gale Burstein said in a press release. “That being said, schools, students and families have shown remarkable resilience this pandemic, and demonstrated the importance of in-school learning. Broadly, they indicated this is a challenge they are willing to accept."
"Its success has been remarkable," said Tarja Parssinen, founder of Western New York Education Alliance. "Just think of all of those healthy students who have been needlessly quarantining."
Grand Island underwent a three-week pilot program in December with Erie County providing tests, staff training, contact tracing support and data analysis, using federal grant money earmarked for school testing and vaccination. It gave students 244 tests, and only two were positive.
Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Dec. 20 that counties would be given the leeway to enact the program and that the state would distribute 2 million rapid tests to schools. Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz announced Dec. 21 that schools in the county could enact the program in mid-January.
Erie County will supply Covid-19 antigen tests to participating schools and school districts once administrators have confirmed their school’s eligibility, and placed orders for test supplies. Cornell praised Poloncarz for working to make sure schools are reimbursed for a portion of the cost of the program.
Eligible schools must have a limited service license from the state and a medical director.
The county said schools will be able to pick up the tests next week and should expect to receive additional rapid tests from the state Health Department.
The number of positive cases among children, teachers and staff in public schools in Erie and Niagara counties doubled from Dec. 1 to Jan. 1, with a total 2,500 new cases reported on Tuesday and Wednesday.
A close contact for students in prekindergarten through 12th grade is considered someone who was within 3 feet of the student testing positive for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period.
Superintendents in Erie and Niagara counties compiled data from their Covid-19 numbers showing an overwhelming number of students on quarantine are healthy and could be in school but for the state's quarantine rules. They say healthy students could stay in school if close contacts were tested instead of quarantined.
Close to 2,500 students in 30 school districts in Erie and Niagara counties were put on quarantine from Sept. 1 through Oct. 10, and about 1.5% of them tested positive, according to Cornell.
According to state guidelines, students must take the test before the school day begins. Students who are allowed to stay in school must quarantine outside academic instruction periods, but they are allowed to ride the bus.
