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Fauci: RI in 'good place' for reopening schools

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During a discussion with Gov. Gina Raimondo, Dr. Anthony Fauci explained that Rhode Island’s low COVID-19 infection rate and concerns regarding remote learning may make it safe for students to return to school, as long as they follow social distancing guidelines.

The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases spoke with Raimondo for about half an hour on Thursday, Aug. 13, at 3 p.m. The two spoke by Zoom and their discussion was shared on Facebook Live.

Fauci explained that many students rely on schools for physical and psychological needs, so going back to in-person learning would be ideal, but some places are not safe enough to do so.

“My recommendation would be exactly what I said to the governor,” Fauci said. “When I made my brief introductory remarks, it would be depending upon where you were. And I think to say ‘All schools must close or all schools must open’ is not the adequate and correct approach. You’ve got to be flexible, because I know because I get asked this a lot.”

Fauci designated states as either green states, in which 5 percent or less of COVID-19 tests are positive; yellow states, in which between 5 and 10 percent of tests are positive; and red states, in which more than 10 percent of tests are positive.

“Rhode Island happens to be, fortunately, because of a lot of the things you've done correctly, to be well into the green state,” Fauci said. “And I think it’s something like 3 percent or 2 percent [test] positive, which means you have less than 10 cases per 100,000. Which means if you have in place, which the governor has clearly made it a goal to have that in place, the ability to identify isolate, contact trace, to get testing for surveillance, then you should be able to open up safely and clearly. Now, there will always be cases. The question is, how do you prevent those blips of cases from becoming something that obviates the whole program? And that’s the thing that you’re preparing for, that you should be able to do, but you’re starting from a very good place.”

Raimondo said that although the state is doing well overall, certain towns are not in the green zone yet. As such, they may need to take different approaches.

“Not every town is green, so for the towns that aren’t green, we’re recommending that they start with like a virtual path, you know, in-person for the younger kids, but virtual for the older kids,” Raimondo said. “We’ve been very serious about it, the state’s green but certain towns aren’t green, so we’re suggesting they may begin with a bit of a hybrid until they get in the green zone. Because, you know, we’ve learned that the high school students did better with distance learning, and the kids really struggled.”

Fauci said that schools should focus on five things to prevent the virus’s spread if classes are held in-person in any capacity – wearing a mask, social distancing, avoiding large crowds, gathering outdoors instead of indoors when possible and ensuring good air ventilation. Fauci said that nothing can completely prevent any risks, but that these factors can significantly decrease the likelihood of getting infected.

Raimondo asked Fauci about possible negative “ripple effects” that could come from complete online learning. Raimondo explained that if students miss in-person school, there are chances for higher rates of domestic abuse and loneliness, as well as an economic and sociological impact.

“Psychologically, separating children from the normal interactions of school and their peers, is number one,” Fauci said. “Number two, ripple effect on the parents who may have to interrupt work, which has the next ripple effect on having a negative effect on the economy. So what we’re trying to do is safely and prudently open up the country, get the economy back to a healthy level, get rid of a lot of the unemployment.”

Raimondo also asked Fauci what he would say to teachers who are hesitant to return to the classroom this fall. Fauci said that although there will always be a risk, the infection rate in Rhode Island is so low that the chance of someone getting infected is unlikely. By following the five steps for preventing spread, the likelihood is mitigated even more.

“And we could say it over and over again, it’s never completely risk free,” Fauci said. “But for goodness sake, we are living in a historic pandemic. We’ve never had anything like this for the last 102 years, since the pandemic of 1918, so it really is a challenge. And you can’t interrupt your life totally indefinitely, you’ve got to try to safely get back to normal. And the way to safely get back to normal is to make sure your state in your city in your county is green, which is and make sure it stays green.”

Fauci, Riamondo

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