All New York City public schools will be required to test weekly for COVID-19 beginning Monday, Sept. 27, Mayor Bill de Blasio said.
“We will be testing elementary, middle and high schools, each school every week,” he said Monday.
Unvaccinated students who test positive must comply with a quarantine, according to the president.
De Blasio said the city will follow CDC guidance and allow unvaccinated students to remain in classrooms as long as they comply with the use of masks and the 3-foot physical distancing. The mayor said school and health officials decided on the changes after analyzing data from the first week of school.
Although the teachers unions criticized the city’s initial biweekly testing policy. Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers union, sent de Blasio and Chancellor Meisha Porter a letter urging stricter rules of test.
“According to the most recent count from the Department of Education, in the first week of the new school year, less than half of our more than 1,800 schools and sites have been assessed, and a total of 663 classrooms have been fully or partially closed, including the closure of an entire school, “the document reads.
“But, because the current tests are biweekly, hundreds of other schools will not receive a test team visit until next week. Meanwhile, students from non-tested schools, including children under the age of 12 who do not they can get vaccinated, they could be unnecessarily exposed to the virus. “
Porter said the new rule will increase testing.
“These changes will begin on September 27, the date the DOE’s vaccination mandate goes into effect, which will be an additional layer of protection for our babies,” he said.
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