CDC Expected To Ease School COVID Guidelines: What It Means In FL

FLORIDA — Federal health authorities are expected to soon ease COVID-19 guidelines for schools in Florida and nationwide, according to a new report.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention could announce the changes in the coming days, CNN reported. The CDC is expected to ease guidelines that address screening for the virus, as well as social distancing recommendations.

Regular COVID-19 screening in schools will likely be de-emphasized and the new measures are expected to loosen quarantine guidelines for those exposed to the virus, according to a preview of the plan obtained by CNN. The agency also reportedly plans to de-emphasize the 6-foot social distancing rule.

Instead of consistent screenings in schools, the CDC will likely suggest that testing be based on COVID-19 community levels and on higher-risk settings, such as nursing homes and prisons. The proposed changes have been revealed to some educators and public health officials and haven’t been finalized, since they are still being discussed, according to the report.

If enacted, the changes to COVID-19 guidelines are in line with COVID-19 policies Florida established for schools and businesses.

Gov. Ron DeSantis signed orders in May 2021 prohibiting local governments and Florida school districts from mandating masks. State law gives parents the authority to choose whether their children wear a mask in schools.

Twelve districts were threatened by the DeSantis administration with the loss of about $200 million total for disobeying the state by implementing mask mandates during a surge in COVID-19 cases at the start of the 2021-22 school year.

The districts put their mask policies in place in the late summer and early fall of 2021 — a time when the spread of the delta variant was rampant, driving up coronavirus cases throughout the state.

As punishment for defying the order, the 12 districts that required masks — Alachua, Brevard, Broward, Duval, Hillsborough, Indian River, Leon, Miami-Dade, Orange, Palm Beach, Sarasota and Volusia counties — faced the massive budget cuts at the direction of the state legislature.

The governor changed his mind in June 2022 after a new education commissioner took office and some of the school districts took legal action.

Related: 'You Don't Have To Wear Those': FL Gov. To Masked Students

Last year, Florida barred businesses from requiring “vaccine passports” for entry. The prohibition has been codified into state law. The measure was first put in place through an executive order DeSantis issued in April 2021.

The state's Republican governor was an early proponent of reopening the state's businesses and tourist attractions as vaccines were rolled out to growing segments of the population.

Another set of state laws adopted in November 2021 bar vaccine mandates for state government workers and requires private companies that mandate staff vaccination to allow a wide range of exemptions for unvaccinated workers.

The CDC did not comment on the report stating changes to COVID-19 guidelines were coming soon and offered Patch the following statement:

“The CDC is always evaluating our guidance as science changes and will update the public as it occurs.”

COVID-19 guidelines have varied widely even since 2020 when the pandemic began. Several states and local governments have since removed many or all restrictions.

In Georgia, Gov. Brian Kemp signed a law in March allowing parents to opt their children out of wearing masks at school, even in districts that mandate them. Local governments and schools in Texas and Florida have been barred from requiring masks since May 2021, when governors Greg Abbott and DeSantis signed executive orders in their respective states.

Conversely, employees and volunteers at public schools in Washington, D.C., are required to be vaccinated, with exceptions for religious beliefs or medical conditions. In California, school staff must be vaccinated or tested weekly for COVID-19.