Thread by @kerpen

The American Academy of Pediatric *finally* weighs in on schools.

"the AAP strongly advocates that all policy considerations for the coming school year should start with a goal of having students physically present in school."

services.aap.org/en/pages/2019-…

"Lengthy time away from school and associated interruption of supportive services often results in social isolation, making it difficult for schools to identify and address important learning deficits as well...

...as child and adolescent physical or sexual abuse, substance use, depression, and suicidal ideation. This, in turn, places children and adolescents at considerable risk of morbidity and, in some cases, mortality."

AAP: It's not the flu!!!

"SARS-CoV-2 appears to behave differently in children and adolescents than other common respiratory viruses, such as influenza, on which much of the current guidance regarding school closures is based."

"Although children and adolescents play a major role in amplifying influenza outbreaks, to date, this does not appear to be the case with SARS-CoV-2."

"Although many questions remain, the preponderance of evidence indicates that children and adolescents are less likely to be symptomatic and less likely to have severe disease resulting from SARS-CoV-2 infection."

"In addition, children may be less likely to become infected and to spread infection. Policies to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 within schools must be balanced with the known harms to children, adolescents, families, and the community by keeping children at home."

"Evidence suggests that spacing as close as 3 feet may approach the benefits of 6 feet of space... Schools should weigh the benefits of strict adherence to a 6-feet spacing rule between students with the potential downside if remote learning is the only alternative."

"Strict adherence to a specific size of student groups (eg, 10 per classroom, 15 per classroom, etc) should be discouraged in favor of other risk mitigation strategies."

"When developing policy regarding the use of cloth face coverings by students or school staff, school districts and health advisors should consider whether the use of cloth face coverings is developmentally appropriate and feasible and whether the policy can be instituted safely"

"If not developmentally feasible, which may be the case for younger students, and cannot be done safely (eg, the face covering makes wearers touch their face more than they otherwise would)...

... schools may choose to not require their use when physical distancing measures can be effectively implemented."

"School staff and older students (middle or high school) may be able to wear cloth face coverings safely and consistently and should be encouraged to do so."

Overall the AAP school recommendations are vastly superior to the CDC guidelines. All school administrators should make this document their starting point.