Rochelle Walensky, the newly appointed director of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) appeared on CBS Meet the Press today to discuss the CDC’s new school reopening guidelines. These are more thorough, and, if followed, probably more useful than previous CDC proposals. It is, however, a set of guidelines, not a mandate for action. It includes:
As an “overview,” it presents a table giving brief description of measures taken and identifying them as permitting low to high levels of transmission. They say that schools operating at the high end should not open.
Detailed instructions on the kinds of masks to wear, how to clean & care for them, etc.
Strict 6 foot distancing. They say this is necessary for full return to school, but, of course, without doubling (or more) the size of the schools, there’s no room for full return and 6 ft distancing.
Teachers should be vaccinated (Anthony Fauci told ABC today that that’s not absolutely necessary if the other CDC guidelines are followed.)
Overall increased testing, including genetic sequencing to identify and track mutations. Walensky says that B.1.1.7 strain, now estimated at 4% of the U.S. infections, may be dominant here by next month.
COVID relief package should include funds for improving the safety of our schools. Anthony Fauci said that passing the stimulus bill with these measures is a requirement for school re-opening.
These proposals are clearly not workable in the Great Reset, so it remains to be seen whether there is anything more than pleasant talk in these proposals.
