COVID Testing News

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Isolation and Quarantine at BUGS (updated January 31, 2022)

Email covid@bugsbrooklyn.org with questions about your specific circumstance.

Shortened Isolation Period for Positive Cases 

The isolation period for all staff and students who test positive for COVID-19 has been shortened to five days (from ten), regardless of age or vaccine/booster status. Individuals who have tested positive for COVID-19 do not need a negative COVID test to return to school or work after isolation. 

If an individual has COVID symptoms and tests positive (on any kind of COVID test), the individual must isolate for a minimum of five days, with Day 0 being the day that symptoms started. After five days the individual may return to school/work so long as they have been fever-free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication and symptoms are improving.

If an individual has no symptoms but tests positive (on any kind of COVID test), the individual must isolate for five days, with Day 0 being the day the test was collected. If symptoms develop within five days of testing positive, the five-day isolation count must restart, with Day 0 being the day symptoms started. 

If an individual has COVID-like symptoms and is awaiting a test result, the individual must isolate until the test result is received OR for five days, whichever comes first. If the test result is negative, the individual can end isolation. If the test result is positive, the individual must complete the five-day isolation period and may return to school/work so long as they have been fever-free for 24 hours without fever-reducing medication and symptoms are improving.

IMPORTANT: Anyone who has tested positive and returns to school or work after Day 5 must wear a well-fitting face covering from Day 6 through Day 10. DOHMH recommends a high-grade well-fitting mask such as a KN95 or KF94, or a surgical mask worn under a cloth mask. BUGS has adult-sized KN95 masks available for staff and for students who can tolerate a high-grade mask; we also have three-ply surgical masks for students who cannot tolerate a high-grade mask.. Anyone who experienced symptoms and tested negative for COVID but is returning to school or work must also wear a well-fitting face covering from Day 6 through Day 10. If the individual cannot wear a well-fitting face covering for the duration of the school day, the individual should continue to isolate and can return on Day 11.

New Quarantine Guidelines 

If a student is not fully vaccinated and exposed to COVID-19 outside of a school setting, the individual must now quarantine for at least five days; this has been shortened from 10 days. Anyone returning from a five-day quarantine period must wear a well-fitting mask, as mentioned above, while at school from Days 6 through 10. 

For an unvaccinated student who is exposed in the home, the student must continue to quarantine for an additional five days after a household member’s isolation period has ended, if the household member is not isolated from the student or the student continues to be exposed to the household member in the same home during that time. 

As a reminder, staff and students in grades kindergarten and higher, when exposed to COVID-19 at school, do not need to quarantine and should continue to use the home test kits provided by their school. These students and staff should only receive one home test kit per week, regardless of the number of exposures during that week. 

Individuals Recently Recovered from COVID-19 

Students or staff who have recovered from a confirmed case of COVID-19 within the past 90 days do not have to quarantine or test following an exposure unless they show COVID symptoms. Starting on January 31, the DOE health screener will be revised to address this scenario. Although BUGS does not require the health screener on a daily basis, we encourage families to review it together and understand the parameters and conditions for coming to school.

Students or staff who have recovered from a confirmed case of COVID within the past 90 days will not receive at-home test kits following exposure and should not participate in school-based COVID testing.

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New DOE Health Screening Questionnaire: We are not currently requiring students to complete this for entry. However, it may be useful to you to complete it with your child either regularly or as needed, in order to clarify whether they should come to school in certain circumstances.

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DOE’s School Visitor policy listed here

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Sources and Guidance: