The Covid-19 infection rate in New York City has to be less than 3% for schools to reopen, Mayor Bill de Blasio said during the city’s daily Covid-19 press conference on Friday.
New York City has been below that threshold for weeks, de Blasio said.
When schools reopen, face masks will be required along with social distancing, free Covid-19 tests will be offered, and all staff and students should have the personal protective equipment necessary to work in the classroom, de Blasio said. .
Teachers will be required to take the Covid-19 test in the days leading up to the reopening of schools and the test results will be given to teachers within 24 hours of the test, said the City of Chancellor of Schools for the city. New York, Richard Carranza, during the same press conference.
If someone gets sick in the classroom, that information will be communicated quickly, Carranza said.
The goal is to keep children in the same group as much as possible and limit the movement of students and who they come in contact with throughout the day, de Blasio said.
“Everything we do will focus on health and safety,” said the mayor.
If a student or teacher becomes ill, the entire class will be required to remain in quarantine for 14 days, Dr. Ted Long said.
Long, who heads the New York Evidence and Tracing Corps, said the corps will investigate every Covid-19 case in a school and that schools could close for a limited time during the investigation, or could switch to remote learning, he said. .
.
