ADEL, Iowa — With the end of summer getting closer and closer, the start of the school year is just around the corner. For many parents, this means getting their kids prepared to deal with COVID-19 at school once again.
Guidance from the Iowa Department of Public Health encourages schools to view COVID as a common child illness, such as chickenpox or influenza. Further, the document published May 14 says that while children who have tested positive should stay home, kids who have been exposed aren't required to do so.
"... while COVID-19 positive and symptomatic children should be excluded, exposed children should no longer be required to stay home, regardless of mask usage," the guidance reads. "Moreover, when there is a positive case, parents should be given information around exposure to COVID-19 in order to make their own informed decisions regarding risk."
This decision might make Iowa parents nervous, but Abigail Chihak, a health administrator with the Dallas County Health Department, reminded parents that many of the resources that have helped so far will continue to do so.
"Use the tools that we learned really well over the last year," Chihak said. "These are tools we know are effective. Encourage your kiddos to wear their masks, encourage them to really be cognizant about social distancing, and if they don't feel good, make sure you're keeping them home."
Contract tracing efforts have been left up to individual school districts.
In Ames, contact tracing will occur as normal for students between kindergarten and sixth grade, while older students will only participate in tracing if community spread is high. In Ankeny, contact tracing will continue, regardless of grade level.
Urbandale, meanwhile, will only offer contact tracing for household contacts.
Iowa schools are unable to mandate masks in the classroom because of a bill signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds in May, which made it illegal to do so.
If a child has been exposed to COVID-19, test kits can be ordered from testiowa.com.
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