The 2021-2022 school year is going to be different, with masking, vaccines, managing asthma and the flu season is currently top of mind. To help you navigate these challenges, the American Lung Association has answered the top searched for questions from parents about children with asthma returning to school during the COVID-19 pandemic. Click here to read them.

U.S. Department of Education- COVID-19 Resources for Schools, Students, and Families
These resources include guidance and policies related to elementary and secondary education, special education, post-secondary education, and other aspects of lifelong learning. 

U.S Department of Education- Questions and Answers on Civil Rights and School Reopening in the COVID-19 Environment
The purpose of this Q&A is to help students, families, schools, and the public support all students’ rights in educational environments, including in elementary and secondary schools and postsecondary institutions, during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

JAMA Network Health Forum- Mask Exemptions During the COVID-19 Pandemic—A New Frontier for Clinicians
While masking remains contentious, there is bipartisan agreement among policymakers that medical exemptions for masking are necessary and appropriate. Yet there is a dearth of guidance for clinicians on how to approach a request for an exemption. We analyze the medical and legal standards to guide this debate. (9/14/21)

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission- What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and Other EEO Laws
The EEO laws, including the ADA and Rehabilitation Act, continue to apply during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, but they do not interfere with or prevent employers from following the guidelines and suggestions made by the CDC or state/local public health authorities about steps employers should take regarding COVID-19. 

Job Accommodation Network-  Accommodation and Compliance: Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19
JAN does not provide public health, safety, or legal advice, but does offer Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance assistance and practical job accommodation strategies for returning individuals with disabilities to work during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The AAP has updated its interim guidance on measures schools can take during the COVID-19 pandemic to conduct classes safely in person, which is critical to students’ well-being.

The school guidance, which is available at https://bit.ly/2BMPtW5, is one of two guidance documents that were updated today. The other addresses emotional and behavioral health during the pandemic.

The school guidance details the important role schools play in children’s educational, social, physical, and emotional development as well as being a source of special services and nutrition. Without access to the support systems schools provide, disparities among students who are Black, Hispanic, American Indian/Alaska Native, and living in poverty will continue to widen, according to the AAP. The guidance presents new research findings that schools have not been a significant driver of SARS-CoV-2 transmission in their communities when they take safety precautions. Transmission has been especially low among younger children.

Read the entire article here.

NYSCSH COVID-19 Sample Resources now include Sample School COVID-19 Testing Consent Form Instructions, Sample Non-Patient Specific Order for Testing, and Sample Your Child was Seen in the Health Office Due to Symptoms of COVID-19 that may be adapted for use after approval by the school medical director. They are located on the NYSCSH Communicable Disease | Illness | Injury Notifications | Consents | Non-Patient Specific Orders page of the website. 

The NFHS regularly distributes position statements and guidelines to promote public awareness of certain health and safety-related issues. Such information is neither exhaustive nor necessarily applicable to all circumstances or individuals, and is no substitute for consultation with appropriate healthcare professionals.

These guidelines were based on expert opinion and emerging clinical experience but lacked scientific data.

Cardiac injury from SARS-CoV-2 infection among hospitalized patients was reported early in the COVID-19 pandemic. Concern and uncertainty regarding the risk of cardiac sequelae in young athletes with SARS-CoV-2 infection led to the development of several consensus recommendations for the cardiac evaluation of athletes following SARS-CoV-2 infection. 

Click Here to Read Entire Statement

This cross-sectional study reviewed RTP cardiac testing performed between May and October 2020 on professional athletes who had tested positive for COVID-19 and the prevalence of detectable inflammatory heart disease using current RTP screening recommendations.

Troponin testing, electrocardiography (ECG), and resting echocardiography were performed after a positive COVID-19 test result. Interleague, deidentified cardiac data were pooled for collective analysis. Those with abnormal screening test results were referred for additional testing, including cardiac magnetic resonance imaging and/or stress echocardiography.

This study provides large-scale data assessing the prevalence of relevant COVID-19–associated cardiac pathology with the implementation of current RTP screening recommendations. While long-term follow-up is ongoing, few cases of inflammatory heart disease have been detected, and a safe return to professional sports activity has thus far been achieved.

Click here to read the entire research article

This guidance applies to children and adolescents who are participating in and/or returning to physical activity, inclusive of but not limited to, organized sports and physical education class within school. 

This guidance is intended for pediatricians to inform families on how to mitigate risk and prevent the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes COVID-19, to others within sports and other physical activities. 

Click here to read the entire article

The Department has received reports from the field that some school districts are requiring parental consent, on behalf of their children, to COVID-19 testing as a condition of activities including in-person learning and extracurricular activities. The Department hereby clarifies that parent/guardian consent for COVID-19 testing of students may not be a condition of in-person learning or other school activities.  

Click here to read the entire memo