[ad_1]
(Update: added video, comments from OHA and ODE)
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — The 2022-23 school year in Oregon will have limited Covid-19 precautions compared to the past two years.
That, according to Dean Sidelinger, state epidemiologist with the Oregon Health Service, is due in part to low Covid-19 positivity rates and hospitalization rates in the state.
“Overall, positive Covid-19 patients in hospitals and ICUs remain well below the peaks we saw during the delta peaks a year ago and the initial Omicron spikes this past winter,” Sidelinger said at a media briefing Wednesday before the start of the school year.
During a joint news conference by Oregon health authorities and the state Department of Education, Colt Gill, ODE director, announced that Covid-19 procedures will depend on individual school districts.
“This year, almost all health protocols will be determined at the local level,” Gill said.
Nationally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently ended its recommendations for social distancing, quarantine when exposed but not infected, and contact tracing outside medical buildings.
“So the CDC guidelines right now are very much in line with the ODE and OHA guidelines that were released in the spring,” Sidelinger said.
Gill emphasized that it won’t look the same for everyone.
“Each school district may implement a little differently because there is decision-making authority at the local level,” Gill said.
Bend-La Pine Schools’ Covid Mitigation Plan says:
“The school year will begin the way we ended, continuing our multi-layered mitigation strategies, which include recommended one-way masking. Additional multi-layered COVID mitigation strategies will be added as needed if outbreaks occur.”
Gill noted that the outbreak is something that schools need to be prepared for.
“They may change from time to time as we see different options come and go from different communities in Oregon,” Gill said.
Here is a summary of the full press conference of the two agencies:
The Oregon Health Authority and the state Department of Education held an online media briefing Wednesday afternoon to provide an update on the state of the COVID-19 pandemic and efforts to ensure Oregon schools can maintain in-person instruction through the 2022 school year. 2023
Dean Sidelinger, MD MSEd, health officer and state epidemiologist at OHA, noted that hospitalizations of COVID-19-positive patients have continued to decline since July. He also encouraged Oregon families to plan for COVID-19 vaccinations along with routine childhood immunizations to protect their children as they prepare to return to classrooms.
“The immunization schedule is designed to provide immunity at an early age, before children are exposed to disease,” Sidelinger said.
Sidelinger also provided an update on the fall vaccine. Pending federal and state approvals, he said, Oregon should expect to receive supplies of bivalent COVID-19 vaccine boosters this fall from both Pfizer and Moderna. The bivalent vaccines are designed to target the BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants and the original strain.
Sidelinger also encouraged all eligible residents to get a booster: “OHA’s message to anyone eligible for a booster is simple – if you’re eligible, get your booster now and don’t wait until the fall.”
Colt Gill, director of ODE, outlined what families and students can expect with COVID-19 planning and in-person learning for the school year.
“As we move into the next year, we hold strongly to our North Star goal of providing equitable access to in-person learning all day, every school day, for every student,” Gill said.
Gill also highlighted resources for K-12 schools available from ODE. They include COVID-19 Planning Documentsthe Care and Connection and Oregon Classroom WISE tools, a suite of free print and video resources, guided lessons, role plays, and interviews with youth and school staff to support the mental and emotional well-being of students and school staff.
Here are the main topics from Wednesday’s media presence. You can also watch it here.
The briefing comes after the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently announced that the nation should move away from restrictive measures such as quarantines and social distancing and focus on reducing severe illness from Covid-19.
In new guidelines released last Thursday, the agency no longer recommends standing at least 6 feet away from other people to reduce the risk of exposure — a change from guidelines that have been in place since the early days of the pandemic.
[ad_2]
Source link