COVID-19 Isolation and Exposure Guidance for Children and Staff in Child Care, K-12, Out-of-School Time (OST) and Recreational Camp/Program Settings

Overview

Effective August 15, 2022, children and staff in child care, K-12, out-of-school time (OST) and recreational camp settings should follow the below guidance.1

• A rapid antigen test, such as a self-test, is preferred to a PCR test in most situations.

• To count days for isolation, Day 0 is the first day of symptoms OR the day the positive test was taken, whichever is earlier. 

• Contact tracing is no longer recommended or required in these settings, but schools or programs must continue to work with their Local Board of Health in the case of outbreaks.

• The Commonwealth is not recommending:

  • universal mask requirements

  • surveillance testing of asymptomatic individuals

  • contact tracing

  • test-to-stay testing in schools.

  • masks are not required or recommended in these settings except for in school health offices, any individual who wishes to continue to mask, including those who face higher risk from COVID-19, should be supported in that choice.

• All individuals are encouraged to stay up-to-date with vaccination as vaccines remain the best way to help protect yourself and others.

Isolation and exposure guidance and protocols

Guidance for Children and Staff in Child Care, K-12, OST, and Recreational Camp Settings:

• Quarantine is no longer required nor recommended for children or staff in these settings, regardless of vaccination status or where the exposure occurred.

• All exposed individuals may continue to attend programming as long as they remain asymptomatic. Those who can mask should do so until Day 10, and it is recommended that they test on Day 6 of exposure. If symptoms develop, follow the guidance for symptomatic individuals, below.

• Children and staff who test positive must isolate for at least 5 days. If they are asymptomatic or symptoms are resolving and they have been fever free without the use of fever-reducing medicine for 24 hours, they may return to programming after Day 5 and should wear a high-quality mask through Day 10:

• If the child has a negative test on Day 5 or later, they do not need to mask.

• If the individual is unable to mask, they may return to programming with a negative test on Day 5 or later.

• Symptomatic individuals can remain in their school or program if they have mild symptoms, are tested immediately onsite, and that test is negative. Best practice would also include wearing a mask, if possible, until symptoms are fully resolved. For symptomatic individuals, DPH recommends a second test within 48 hours if the initial test is negative.

If the symptomatic individual cannot be tested immediately, they should be sent home and allowed to return to their program or school if symptoms remain mild and they test negative, or they have been fever-free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication and their symptoms are resolving, or if a medical professional makes an alternative diagnosis. A negative test is strongly recommended for

COVID-19 symptoms

Fever (100.0° Fahrenheit or higher), chills, or shaking chills

Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath

New loss of taste or smell

Muscle aches or body aches

Cough (not due to other known cause, such as chronic cough)

Sore throat, when in combination with other symptoms

Nausea, vomiting, when in combination with other symptoms

Headache, when in combination with other symptoms

Fatigue, when in combination with other symptoms

Nasal congestion or runny nose (not due to other known causes, such as allergies), when in combination with other symptoms

There currently is no MAEPSL for staff for the 2022-2023 School Year