How is it where you are?

[SMH]

We are in Illinois, which has paused all youth sports as of Friday. Our gym informed us that they will not be closing and will be continuing with business as usual for both rec and team. We are a mask mandated state, and they do not enforce that either, even though they’ve had positive cases within the gym already. We are also in one of the worst hit counties in the state, with hospitals being overrun and positivity rates skyrocketing. Needless to say, we are very uncomfortable with the choices being made and we’ve decided to move on to a safer environment. Unfortunately, my daughter is a level 10 gymnast who has been with the same program for her entire gymnastics journey. My head is spinning with all of it, but my heart knows it’s the right move to make.

Yikes! I’m so sorry you and your gymnast have to deal with this. We are also in Illinois and most gyms I know of so far are definitely not flat out ignoring the order.

 

[GYM0M]

Pfizer applied for EUA today and expects to begin vaccinating in about 3 weeks. Of course it will be months before the vaccine is available to be everyone in the US.

Happen to know what type of vaccine they submitted for EUA?

 

[gymgal]

Well the "virtual only" learners that we've seen or heard from are doing it so they don't have to leave their houses so I'm guessing that wouldn't be the case but my point was, we notify the Board of health and the schools and it's not an option.

There are many families who have chosen virtual learning because of the high risk jobs their parents have and don't want to increase risk to their community by having their children in school, possibly spreading the virus that was transmitted at home. Then there are the families who have children with extensive medical needs who are at much higher risk of contracting the virus but who also have multiple doctor appointments each week/month. These families choose to keep their healthy children at home to reduce the risk but they are still being exposed from other environments.

 

[gymgal]

Welp, we just learned of a case of student-to-student spread in my daughter’s high school. Fortunately, the victim’s parent found out about the exposure in her child’s class through the rumor mill, pulled her child from school, and had the child tested. The child was asymptomatic and had not been directed to quarantine as a result of the exposure, so if the parent hadn’t taken action she would have continued to attend school and spend unmasked time in a poorly ventilated classroom less than 3 feet from other students. None of this information came from the school or the health department. The parent took it upon herself to notify the community.

Let me get this straight. There are schools out there that are not abiding by the mask policy and allowing the students to routinely be within 3 ft of each other? If this is true, the parents from that school need to demand a change, perhaps by reporting the school. Since the parents appear to know the situation and are keeping their children in the environment, though, perhaps they are ok with it?

It is difficult to tell by the way the situation was explained whether or not the health department/school was required to alert the families in this case but in general, there are a variety of scenarios in which they do not need to alert the families, particularly if the original child is asymptomatic and is awaiting test results based on a close contact exposure outside of school.

 

[gymgal]

In our office , when we get positive COVID results , we (the pediatrician's office) notify the Board of Health, the family and the child's school....there isn't an option to not report it as COVID is considered a reportable illness, at least in our state. The rate of infection by town is reported every week (via the BOH) in the newspaper, with a breakdown of age groups affected ... so if you're in Town A and they report "3 positive cases, age 15" and the schools are saying all clear, you know it isn't. The schools here send notification to all students in an affected class because we're all indoors now in the Northeast.

Could be a variety of situations including private schools, which the public schools would not be reporting (at least in our state, public and private are complete separate). Obviously virtual students as well, as others have noted. It also may come down to what the school is actually saying "all clear" to - does it mean no students with active cases or does it mean no exposure risk from those students with active cases?

 

[gymgal]

We are in Illinois, which has paused all youth sports as of Friday. Our gym informed us that they will not be closing and will be continuing with business as usual for both rec and team. We are a mask mandated state, and they do not enforce that either, even though they’ve had positive cases within the gym already. We are also in one of the worst hit counties in the state, with hospitals being overrun and positivity rates skyrocketing. Needless to say, we are very uncomfortable with the choices being made and we’ve decided to move on to a safer environment. Unfortunately, my daughter is a level 10 gymnast who has been with the same program for her entire gymnastics journey. My head is spinning with all of it, but my heart knows it’s the right move to make.

Just curious - Are gyms, dance studios and training facilities closed down in the state? If not, they may be getting around the closure that way.

 

[mommyof1]

Let me get this straight. There are schools out there that are not abiding by the mask policy and allowing the students to routinely be within 3 ft of each other? If this is true, the parents from that school need to demand a change, perhaps by reporting the school. Since the parents appear to know the situation and are keeping their children in the environment, though, perhaps they are ok with it?

It is difficult to tell by the way the situation was explained whether or not the health department/school was required to alert the families in this case but in general, there are a variety of scenarios in which they do not need to alert the families, particularly if the original child is asymptomatic and is awaiting test results based on a close contact exposure outside of school.

The district's official policy is that it will attempt to keep students 3 feet apart when possible, but will not guarantee any distancing. In practice, student desks are reported to be closer together in many classrooms. Students are directed to eat lunch at their desks in their classrooms with masks off. Parents were made aware of these policies before making a binding decision to have their children attend in person or on line.

What was not disclosed to parents up front was the contact tracing and quarantine policy. In practice, all contact tracing is based on the official seating chart. Only students who were sitting next to an infected student for at least 15 minutes, as recorded on the seating chart, are being quarantined. No other contact tracing is being done, despite the fact that students are in close proximity for extended periods of time in lunch lines and other locations not captured on the seating charts. When parents were making their decisions about on-line versus in-person learning, the district stated that it would defer to the health department on contact tracing, notification, and quarantine. After binding selections were made, the health department announced that notification was in the discretion of the school district. So it's a massive exercise in passing the buck.

One could argue that parents who opted for in-person learning knew what they were getting into based on the statements about distancing and masking. No one, however, was provided with full information about contact tracing, notification, and quarantine. Furthermore, there was an enormous amount of pressure on parents to select in-person learning. Some parents were falsely informed that certain advanced courses would be available in person but not on line (these courses ended up being cut for all students). There were also significant concerns about class size and teacher qualifications in the on-line program, all of which ended up being well-founded.

There is a parent advocacy group organizing letter-writing campaigns, etc., but no one is listening.

 

[bookworm]

Could be a variety of situations including private schools, which the public schools would not be reporting (at least in our state, public and private are complete separate). Obviously virtual students as well, as others have noted. It also may come down to what the school is actually saying "all clear" to - does it mean no students with active cases or does it mean no exposure risk from those students with active cases?

I think you missed my point... the schools don't do the reporting, we do via the board of health...private, public, virtual, homeschooling...all cases are reported. Parents can call the local board of health to get info as well....no names but # of positives cases and age groups, in the town.

 

[SMH]

Just curious - Are gyms, dance studios and training facilities closed down in the state? If not, they may be getting around the closure that way.

Here is the wording for youth sports and indoor recreational activities.
Elsewhere it does say ‘gyms’ can stay open at 25% capacity and that reservations are needed to work out.

 

[gymgal]

Here is the wording for youth sports and indoor recreational activities.
Elsewhere it does say ‘gyms’ can stay open at 25% capacity and that reservations are needed to work out.

A gymnastics training facility could easy claim to be within it's right to remain open given that policy. They can claim the gymnasts are individually training on separate equipment and maintaining social distance. Whether their explanation holds up to penalties if caught is another story but it doesn't surprise me that they are trying.

 

[gymgal]

I think you missed my point... the schools don't do the reporting, we do via the board of health...private, public, virtual, homeschooling...all cases are reported. Parents can call the local board of health to get info as well....no names but # of positives cases and age groups, in the town.

I was responding to the part where you stated "so if you're in Town A and they report "3 positive cases, age 15" and the schools are saying all clear, you know it isn't." Maybe I misunderstood you but it appeared you were implying that a school must be lying if they were saying they were "all clear" when there are cases in that age group. Does the health dept provide information to the public as to where the cases go to school, including whether the students are virtual vs in person, had exposed other students vs had the close contact on the weekend and had not returned back to school, etc. Unless stats like these are public record, then you cannot know whether the school is being truthful about the "all clear" status.

 

[bookworm]

I was responding to the part where you stated "so if you're in Town A and they report "3 positive cases, age 15" and the schools are saying all clear, you know it isn't." Maybe I misunderstood you but it appeared you were implying that a school must be lying if they were saying they were "all clear" when there are cases in that age group. Does the health dept provide information to the public as to where the cases go to school, including whether the students are virtual vs in person, had exposed other students vs had the close contact on the weekend and had not returned back to school, etc. Unless stats like these are public record, then you cannot know whether the school is being truthful about the "all clear" status.

Actually , the health department does provide general info on where they go to school (HS/middle/virtual) and if it is believed to be exposure outside of the school realm (exposed at the schools vs in the community)

 

[skschlag]

Actually , the health department does provide general info on where they go to school (HS/middle/virtual) and if it is believed to be exposure outside of the school realm (exposed at the schools vs in the community)

OUrs does this as well.

But we do have to remember that just like our health care system, our health departments are seriously overwhelmed and understaffed. There are not enough contact tracers to trace every case the way it should be done.

 

[ReluctantGymMom]

We’re in Florida, when my husband tested positive he was given the option to decline contact tracing when they contacted him a full week later. I don’t know about y’all’s states but I’m sure here, a lot of people opted out of contact tracing period

 

[bookworm]

We’re in Florida, when my husband tested positive he was given the option to decline contact tracing when they contacted him a full week later. I don’t know about y’all’s states but I’m sure here, a lot of people opted out of contact tracing period

That's interesting... locally there were some outbreaks in the hockey rinks and when the boards of health tried to do contact tracing with the affected persons, the parents were "uncooperative with the efforts " so the the rinks got shut down for a couple of weeks!

 

[raenndrops]

That's interesting... locally there were some outbreaks in the hockey rinks and when the boards of health tried to do contact tracing with the affected persons, the parents were "uncooperative with the efforts " so the the rinks got shut down for a couple of weeks!

My brother was 100% with the contact tracing. Luckily, there was no one who was considered in close contact. We were Super careful from the moment we found out he had a POSSIBLE exposure. Nobody had been within 6 feet of him since 18 hours before his NEGATIVE test.

 

[Tigtimes]

hockey has been a major source of spreading. It has shut both private boarding schools and colleges here on the east coast. Parents and tournaments have not been forthcoming with rosters when asked for contact tracing. Hockey shut my sons college which had zero cases till 2 kids went to a tournament against college rules. 2000 kids whose Semester of in person was ended by hockey. Yup I am still angry with hockey.

A Coronavirus Outbreak at a Hockey Rink Has Spread Across Vermont. Here's What Happened

Small social gatherings without masks and failure to quarantine helped fuel a coronavirus outbreak that began at a hockey rink in central Vermont and has spread to at least 89 people across the state. During a press conference Friday, health officials provided details about the outbreak, which...

www.necn.com

 

[raenndrops]

Just FYI, a friend of mine and a fellow gymnastics parent works for a company that had been testing a vaccine for COVID. She was not able to say a word to me as the information was confidential. They recently put out a press release so she can now officially talk. Her company's vaccine has gone through testing and has the FDA's approval. Two more vaccines are getting approval soon as well. Starting in January the vaccines will be given out in phases. First phase is for the elderly. Second is for those with health issues that would make them more vulnerable. Third is the frontline workers. Then onto everyone else. I'm not sure if denser areas of population would get it before other areas. I don't know how long each phase lasts. I'm hoping 2021 will see things getting back to a new and improved normal.

I heard from a couple different sources that first will be medical personnel at high risk of exposure ... Phase 2 and Phase 3 will each EITHER be the elderly or those with underlying conditions that make them more vulnerable (I personally think the 2 groups should be done at the same time). After that will be frontline workers (Truck drivers, grocery store workers, gas station attendants, active duty military, etc, and first responders who didn't get it in Phase 1).

My take:
It makes sense to do the medical personnel first. Hospitals are so short staffed, they are having personnel who test positive but are asymptomatic still work. We need healthy doctors and nurses to treat sick and injured people.
I think Phase 2 should be anyone living OR working in a group living setting (residents and workers of nursing homes, assisted living facilities, military "dorm style" barracks, prisons, college dorms, and group homes).
Phase 3 should be the rest of the elderly and those at risk due to underlying conditions.
Phase 4 should be frontline workers not already vaccinated as part of the groups above.
Phase 5 should be everyone else.

 

[MILgymFAM]

My husband has been told the Corps isn’t interested in the vaccine as of now, but I’m sure they can change their mind at will.

 

[NutterButter]

My husband has been told the Corps isn’t interested in the vaccine as of now, but I’m sure they can change their mind at will.

What? Don't they get vaccinated for like everything?!