Negative PCR to return

[Anonymous]

Our daycare is requiring a negative PCR to return in January. I am all for ensuring safety to prevent a two or more week closure. Unfortunately my 4 year old had Covid in early December and is still testing positive despite having no symptoms. I have an elementary school student as well so I know the policy on no random testing for 90 days due to viral remnants. I have sent that policy to the director and she said a negative test is required to return.

I am freaking out since this means our preschooler could be home another month until he tests negative. He hasn’t been back to daycare/preschool since his diagnosis since his quarantine brought us up to the holidays. I’m ready for him to go back. Anyone else running into this problem?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our daycare is requiring a negative PCR to return in January. I am all for ensuring safety to prevent a two or more week closure. Unfortunately my 4 year old had Covid in early December and is still testing positive despite having no symptoms. I have an elementary school student as well so I know the policy on no random testing for 90 days due to viral remnants. I have sent that policy to the director and she said a negative test is required to return.

I am freaking out since this means our preschooler could be home another month until he tests negative. He hasn’t been back to daycare/preschool since his diagnosis since his quarantine brought us up to the holidays. I’m ready for him to go back. Anyone else running into this problem?

Get a doctor’s note to back what you are saying

[Anonymous]

Negative PCR is crazy and not understanding the science. Have you talked to the director?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Negative PCR is crazy and not understanding the science. Have you talked to the director?

Agree and I emailed the director but she said the parent board is very adamant that we need a test to return policy like many other schools. I have his positive test results from the doctor in early December to prove its been 4+ weeks since the positive test but she seems stuck in her testing policy. I’ll keep pushing back.

[Anonymous]

That’s absurd! It’s well known that people can test positive for weeks after the initial illness…

I’d try a doctors note

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Negative PCR is crazy and not understanding the science. Have you talked to the director?

Agree and I emailed the director but she said the parent board is very adamant that we need a test to return policy like many other schools. I have his positive test results from the doctor in early December to prove its been 4+ weeks since the positive test but she seems stuck in her testing policy. I’ll keep pushing back.

Can you show that those other policies exclude those who have tested positive in the prior 90 days? At our school, we test all students and staff weekly and if you’ve had COViD in the previous 3 months, you aren’t even tested.

[Anonymous]

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/duration-isolation.html

Patients who have recovered from COVID-19 can continue to have detectable SARS-CoV-2 RNA in upper respiratory specimens for up to 3 months after illness onset. However, replication-competent virus has not been reliably recovered and infectiousness is unlikely.

[Anonymous]

This whole policy sounds muddled. Is it a negative test that EVERYONE has to take before x date to return? Or is it that every single child has to test negative before ever returning. My interpretation is the former not the latter which is what a lot of local providers are requiring. Obviously it is likely your child will test positive, but why would they be out a month? What’s the requirement for a positive case at your school? At ours, you need a doctor’s note clearing you which can be as soon as day 6 if you have no symptoms. If it’s a negative PCR at your school for anyone to return after being positive, the school will have a lot of angry parents.

But also agree with other posters to get your doctor to write a note and see if that helps. Good luck OP!

[Anonymous]

First, I'd get the test. Because many people don't continue to test positive, so if he doesn't that's easy.

And then if he does, I'd fight it. But first, I'd get the test.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First, I'd get the test. Because many people don't continue to test positive, so if he doesn't that's easy.

And then if he does, I'd fight it. But first, I'd get the test.

Get an antigen too, to show that they're now negative on that one.

[Anonymous]

Yep get a pediatrician's note and have the ped call your daycare director if necessary. I worry about this too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yep get a pediatrician's note and have the ped call your daycare director if necessary. I worry about this too.

Yes this. Fight it, but with people who know more.

I will say preschool directors have freaked out. Ours has crazy rules, like we are supposed to keep our kid home for 5 days if either parents spends a night away from the house or we have overnight visitors. They just don't need this information, so I don't share with them. I appreciate they are trying to keep covid out of the center, but masking, ventilation and basic hygiene and the staff being vaccinated/boosted is as good as it gets. Only some of the kids are 5, so they are just getting some kids with vaccines. But they seem incapable of changing policy with new information.

My kid is off to K next year so I'm just going with it for the next few months. But I will be pulling him out during the summer because I can't pay $400 for him to stay home after we go on vacation. We are all vaccinated to the fullest extent and drive to our vacations!

[Anonymous]

They are trying to keep a large group of unvaccinated kids safe. My advice is to have your pediatrician call them and explain that your child is safe to return. They may not change their overall policy but will let your child back.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They are trying to keep a large group of unvaccinated kids safe. My advice is to have your pediatrician call them and explain that your child is safe to return. They may not change their overall policy but will let your child back.

They may be trying to, but they clearly don't understand the science when making policies. Good info here which you can pass on or cut and paste to them.

https://yourlocalepidemiologist.substack.com/p/antigen-tests-and-omicron

[Anonymous]

will they accept a rapid test instead