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Marin County schools loosen some COVID rules
KTVU's Allie Rasmus reports.
MARIN, Calif. - Schools in Marin County will be able to relax some rules about when and how long students and staff have to quarantine after being exposed to a positive COVID case.
One of the biggest changes that's been in effect since school resumed after the winter break: there is no more automatic 10-day quarantine for kids and staff who test positive for COVID.
Under updated guidelines, if a person tests positive, has no symptoms, or if their symptoms resolve quickly they can test again on day five and if they're negative, they can go back to class on day six.
If they test positive on day five they can test again on the 7th day after their initial positive test. If it's negative they can return on day 8.
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"It's becoming more nuanced so that people would be able to return to school instead of automatically being out for ten days. This is a change being made at the federal level and state wide, and we're now applying that to our community," said Marin County Superintendent of Education, Mary Jane Burke.
Another change in the guidelines: people who are fully vaccinated do not need to quarantine at all if they have no symptoms. A person who is unvaccinated, but has been infected with COVID in the past 30 days also does not have to quarantine if showing now symptoms.
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Marin County relaxes school COVID guidelines
Rules for quarantining are loosening for vaccinated and unvaccinated students in Marin County. Exposure notices will also be sent in more limited circumstances.
Also in Marin County, schools are changing the definition of what qualifies as a "close contact." It's now defined as someone in a carpool, a sports teammate, or a close friend.
"Imagine there's a student who has a best buddy and that best buddy he is with all day long, every chance he gets. They would identify that as a close contact as opposed to a student who is sitting next to a child in a classroom," Burke said.
In a webinar to parents and community members, Thursday evening, Marin County Health Officials explained that at this point, everyone should assume they are going to be exposed to COVID and the definition of a close contact now has to become more specific and focused.
Health officials also outlined some encouraging news about the latest Omicron surge: Average daily cases of COVID in Marin County are half of what they were just a couple weeks ago.
Daily case rates peaked on January 4, with an average of 637 cases a day for the previous seven-day period. This week, the average is about 300 cases per day.
"The science is showing that while our cases are going up, hospitalizations are stable. The symptoms people are identifying are not severe," said Burke.
According to Marin County's COVID dashboard, there are 15 people hospitalized in the county with the virus, five of which are in the ICU.
Marin County has one of the highest vaccination rates in the state and nation: 93% of people ages five and older have been fully vaccinated.