It’s no secret that COVID-19 is surging across the United States right now. Just how severe is it? As reported by Your Local Epidemiologist, our most reliable indicator at this moment, hospitalizations are skyrocketing due to delays in reporting and testing following the holidays. Remember when Los Angeles was out of hospital beds in mid-December? Now they’re running low on oxygen for COVID-19 patients, with the Los Angeles County Emergency Medical Services Agency instructing crews to refrain from transporting patients with slim chances of survival, according to a news outlet in Chicago. They’ve even repurposed gymnasiums into makeshift hospitals. With a “feared surge” anticipated from holiday gatherings, the situation is dire, with one hospital official labeling it “a human disaster.” In short, this is the worst possible moment to consider reopening schools.
And it’s not limited to Southern California. The virus is also wreaking havoc in the South. Smaller counties in Florida, such as Seminole, have hit zero ICU capacity, as reported by local news. In South Carolina, The State reveals that numerous counties in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia are experiencing 95% occupancy in their ICU beds, including those near major cities. States are breaking records for hospitalizations daily. Local news from Alabama indicates their hospitals are also overwhelmed, and officials suspect the current crisis stems from Thanksgiving gatherings—not yet from Christmas.
We’re witnessing the worst of COVID-19 that we’ve seen thus far. It’s simply not safe to reopen schools.
Reopening Schools Risks Spreading the Virus
With the virus rampant outside of schools, asymptomatic children will inevitably fill classrooms. They could contract the virus from family members or peers. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), evidence suggests that as many as half of all pediatric COVID-19 cases are asymptomatic. So, while a classroom full of kids might seem healthy, the reality is they could be carriers, not just transmitting the virus among themselves but also to teachers and staff.
These educators could then take the virus home, potentially infecting more vulnerable populations, including the elderly and those with pre-existing conditions like asthma. The Harvard Gazette cites a study from The Journal of Pediatrics, which found that children, including those without symptoms, carry a viral load greater than that of ICU patients. Moreover, research from JAMA indicates that asymptomatic children can shed the virus for weeks. If we reopen schools, our unsuspecting superspreaders may very well be young children.
Don’t Discuss Proper Protocols, Karen
In an ideal world, we could safely reopen schools, complete with proper masking and distancing, thorough disinfection, and adequate air circulation. This world would also require regular temperature checks and effective contact tracing.
Who wants to volunteer to keep masks on thirty-five kids all at once? No cheating! They can’t touch their faces without sanitizing before and after, and they can’t have their noses exposed. While you’re managing that, try to enforce six-foot spacing. Go ahead, Karen. We’ll watch from a distance. Let’s not forget, some of these children are asymptomatic!
Many schools already lack proper ventilation, as noted by the National Education Association. How can children safely distance during a school bus ride? Or during a fire drill? Or an active shooter drill? What about in the bathroom? During lunch, while maintaining ventilation requirements, since they cannot be masked and must be more than six feet apart?
All of this is occurring while we see the highest COVID-19 numbers to date. It is not feasible to reopen schools without triggering a public health catastrophe.
Let’s Discuss High School
Moreover, high school students and COVID-19 do not mix well. Epidemiologists have found that teenagers often fail to report COVID-19 symptoms to avoid quarantine. Since a positive test could lead to contact tracing and force their peers into quarantine, many may refuse testing. Alarmingly, the CDC cites a South Korean study showing that teens and tweens are more likely to spread COVID-19 than younger children or adults. The decision to reopen schools could lead to a public health crisis.
Students may come to school simply to avoid missing a sports game or an AP test if schools reopen. As infection numbers continue to rise, more teens will spread the virus, which will subsequently reach more vulnerable populations, resulting in increased hospitalization and death rates. Reopening schools would only further strain our already overwhelmed healthcare systems.
For the Sake of Hospitals, Don’t Reopen Schools
As challenging as the current situation is, it’s poised to worsen. We are still experiencing spikes from Thanksgiving gatherings, and we are about to see surges from Christmas and New Year’s celebrations. Newsweek reports that the weekend before Christmas saw more travelers than during Thanksgiving. If hospital beds are full now, many states could be facing a crisis similar to that of Los Angeles in the coming weeks: paramedics forced to deny transport to certain patients, commandeering church gyms, and running out of oxygen.
If we reopen schools, we will only exacerbate this impending disaster.
Yes, we’re all tired of staying home. Almost ten months after schools began closing, we’re exhausted. We crave a sense of normalcy. But we won’t find it by pretending the situation is under control. We must stay home. We need to self-isolate. We have to resist reopening schools, regardless of political pressure. This decision not only protects children and staff; it also curbs the virus’s spread in our communities and alleviates the burden on healthcare systems.
Reopening schools while the virus is rampant would only intensify the crisis.
Summary
The article emphasizes that now is the worst time to reopen schools due to the alarming rise in COVID-19 cases across the U.S. With hospitals overwhelmed and children potentially acting as asymptomatic spreaders, the risks of reopening outweigh any perceived benefits. It outlines the logistical challenges of enforcing safety protocols in schools and highlights the potential consequences for public health and healthcare systems.