Dear JKHA/RKYHS Families,
The changing and evolving nature of the Covid-19 compels us to constantly review our protocols and policies and amend them as necessary. Thank you for partnering with us as we update our policies in light of new information.
After reviewing the CDC guidelines that suggest a shorter quarantine period for positive individuals, we have updated JKHA/RKYHS’ return to school policies as follows:
A Covid-19 positive case (called the “index case”) may return to school after five days from the date of the PCR test once he/she tests negative on a home rapid antigen test and is not symptomatic. A recovered Covid-19 individual who tests negative on a rapid antigen test may return to school on day six. Please send a photo of the negative rapid test and send it to results@jkha.org. (Please do not test using a PCR rapid to detect the virus after the five days of quarantine. The PCR is more sensitive and may be positive even if the index case is no longer contagious).
The five-day count begins after the day the PCR test was taken. The day of the PCR test is day zero, followed by five days at home. The index case may return on the 6th day provided that the rapid antigen test is negative.
Within 30 days after the initial positive PCR test, a recovered index case should not quarantine even if there is a household exposure.
Vaccinated and unvaccinated siblings may return to school once the index case is negative on day five.
We are in the process of procuring Abbot Binex home rapid tests that will be available for purchase from the school. We will inform you when the tests arrive (hopefully).
As a reminder, non-household exposures to a Covid-19 positive individual do not require quarantine. We have adopted the test-to-stay approach authorized by the CDC.
JKHA/RKYHS will continue to screen our students, faculty and staff on a frequent basis. The highly effective screening process helps us identify positive individuals before they are infectious which is why we require students in suspicious screening pools to take a PCR test before they may safely return to school. Our system has proven to be highly effective; positive asymptomatic individuals are detected regularly within the suspicious pods.
We recognize that changes to the protocols can be confusing and unsettling. Our goal is to balance educational priorities with public health challenges. We will continue to update you in real-time if it becomes necessary to modify our policies.
Thank you for honoring our community by following our policies and for your commitment to our collective health.
Eliezer E. Rubin
