‘Closing schools greater public health risk than reopening’

WASHINGTON: When the educators are discussion on various options of reopening the schools that are shutdown to ward off the health hazards set by COVID-19 pandemic, the US officials in Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are of the opinion that closing schools pose greater public health risk than reopening.

Answering the question related to the health risks the reopening of the schools could make room for Robert Redfield, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that closing schools pose more serious public health risk than reopening them abiding the precautionary regulations suggested.

He added that the guidelines the CDC has given on operating schools during the pandemic are designed to facilitate their reopening, and they would be “disappointed” if they were misinterpreted as the rationale to keep the schools closed.

“I cannot overstate how important I think it is now to get our schools in this nation reopened,” Redfield said at The Hill’s Health Reimagined virtual summit. “The reason I push it is that I truly believe it’s for the public health benefit of these kids.”

Remarkably, President Donald Trump darned the CDC guidelines for schools to reopen as “impractical” and “expensive.”

However, President Trump has called on schools to reopen, though there is no federal plan to coordinate the attempt.

(With inputs from Agencies)