Quarantine Requirement for Students Dropping to Five (5) Days

The quarantine requirement for students testing positive for COVID is dropping to five (5) days. Rye City School District outlined the new procedures in an email Tuesday. This revision compliments the test-to-stay program for those exposed to someone with COVID.

From: Eric Byrne
Date: Tue, Jan 11, 2022 at 5:36 PM
Subject: Student Quarantine/Isolation Reduced to Five Days by DOH
To: Rye City School District Recipients

Dear RCSD Parents and Guardians,

We have just received word from the Westchester County Department of Health that they have accepted the CDC’s recommendation to reduce isolation and quarantine for students from 10 to 5 days, given certain conditions are met. They are as follows:

Students who test positive for COVID-19 and never develop symptoms should isolate for at least 5 days. (Day 0 is the day of the positive viral test (based on the date of testing) and day 1 is the first full day after the specimen was collected for the positive test)

If they continue to have no symptoms, they can end isolation after at least 5 days.
They should continue to wear a well-fitting mask around others at home and in public until day 10 (day 6 through day 10). If they are unable to wear a mask when around others, they should continue to isolate for 10 days.

If symptoms develop, please contact the school nurse for further guidance.
Students who have COVID-19 and have or had symptoms should isolate for at least 5 days. (To calculate the 5-day isolation period, day 0 is the first day of symptoms. Day 1 is the first full day after their symptoms developed)

They can end isolation after 5 full days if they are fever-free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication and other symptoms have improved (loss of taste and smell may persist for weeks or months after recovery and need not delay the end of isolation).
They should continue to wear a well-fitting mask around others at home and in public for 5 additional days (day 6 through day 10) after the end of their 5-day isolation period. If they are unable to wear a mask when around others, they should continue to isolate for 10 days.

If they continue to have fever or other symptoms have not improved after 5 days of isolation, they should wait to end isolation until they are fever-free for 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medication and their other symptoms have improved. They should continue to wear a well-fitting mask and contact their healthcare provider with questions.
Unvaccinated/partially-vaccinated* students who have been exposed to a COVID-positive individual and have no symptoms should quarantine for 5 days (day 0 through day 5) after their last close contact. These individuals are eligible for the RCSD’s Test-to-Stay program that would allow them to stay in the school setting during the week. The students in the Test-to-Stay program may attend school but should quarantine when not in school.

If symptoms develop, please contact the school nurse for further guidance.
*Fully vaccinated is defined as two weeks after the receipt of either two doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or one dose of Johnson and Johnson vaccine or full course of any other recognized vaccine.

Tomorrow, a representative from the Health Services Department will contact the families of any student who may qualify for reduced quarantine. Please review the conditions above and be prepared to discuss symptoms (or lack thereof) and dates of test results, onset of symptoms, and number of quarantine/isolation days already completed. Please do not bring your child to school or send them to school tomorrow prior to speaking with Health Services to get clearance. We will work to clear students who meet the criteria to return for Thursday, January 13.

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we continue to navigate all these changes in guidance. Our primary goal is to keep students, faculty, and staff safe while keeping our schools open for in-person instruction. These changes will certainly help us in this effort.

Sincerely,

Eric Byrne, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools