L.A. County Will Not Consider Waivers to Re-open Schools

For now, private and public schools will remain closed across the county. – Courtesy photo by CDC on Unsplash

The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (Public Health) will not be considering waivers for re-opening of schools at this time, following new guidance from the California Department of Public Health.

Th new guidelines recommend that counties with case rates at or above 200 cases per 100,000 residents do not extend waivers to resume classroom instruction for students in transitional kindergarten through sixth grade.

Los Angeles County’s case rate currently is 355 per 100,000. The decision will be reconsidered once the case rate falls to the levels recommended by the state.

“We know that to many families, this is a disappointing announcement, but it’s based on the existing science and data that is guiding all of our decision-making. We need to ensure the health and safety of our children, school teachers and staff and all of their families,” officials said in a press release.

Public Health says it will continue to implement infection control strategies to reduce community transmission and case rates so that schools can re-open for in-person instruction as soon as it is safe to do so.

While all schools, public and private, across the county are closed for in-person instruction of students, teachers, staff and administrators are allowed to return to school buildings provided they adhere to existing protocols that require physical distancing and infection control measures, including wearing face coverings.