COVID policies 2023

[Anonymous]

Is anyone else’s daycare still doing close contact quarantining and/or test to stay? Out daycare continues to PCR test weekly and I’m wondering if others in DC are doing the same.

[Anonymous]

No. If you test positive, you stay home for five days and the class gets an email (which we all ignore, I think). That’s it.

We were supposed to test before coming back from break but any test qualified. And I forgot to tell anyone our negative result, so clearly it wasn’t actually required.

[Anonymous]

No, and ours never required test to stay.

[Anonymous]

Ours has never had test to stay, and they stopped quarantining when the guidelines changed. Now the only COVID policy I know of is they follow CDC guidelines for isolation of kids that test positive for COVID.

[Anonymous]

All test to stay is done with rapid at home test.

We do test to stay IF a child or teacher had covid and was in the classroom before getting diagnoses so the classroom was in contact with that person. In that case, every person in that classroom tests for 7 days and wears a mask for 7 days (and if someone has SYMPTOMS then they stay home, and take a PCR test, but we haven't had any spread among children or teachers at this point, 3 years in)

We don't do test to stay if the child or teacher was with someone over the weekend who had covid (test using PCR if child/teacher has symptoms, but not for being at a birthday party with someone you later discover was covid positive)

we require that child/teacher stays home for 5 days if someone IN THEIR HOME is covid positive - after that the child/teacher needs to test on day 5, and may return on day 6 if they are negative. and wear a mask for the next 4 days indoors [while we haven't had any covid spread among the children/teachers in our school, we HAVE had nearly every child who has a covid positive parent get covid, so it's why we are sticking with this one right now)

we require all teachers are vaccinated and boosted once.

We don't require all children are vaccinated, although most of our children are or are in the process of getting their 2 or 3 shots.

We still require that anyone with symptoms get a PCR test (not an at-home rapid test - that's only used to test the morning of for test to stay or return after 5 days)

We are in DC and we are probably a bit more on the conservative side because our parent population is (was) during the 2020-2022 years.

We didn't used to do test to stay, but in all those test to stay scenarios, we just shut the room and if someone was even with someone on the weekend who we found to be covid positive later, that person would be quaranained at home. That was fun times! So we are much more liberal now and nearly all children are at our school all the time.

[Anonymous]

Yes, we have test to stay and my DD’s class recently closed for 5 days due to an exposure. Children could return with a negative test and mask for an additional week. Though many of the 3-5 year old classes are still masking.

We also have a vaccine requirement and any subsequent boosters that may be required.

Our flu/ RSV policy though is lax. Just 24 hours fever free. We have been told that’s changing though to mirror more covid- like policies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is anyone else’s daycare still doing close contact quarantining and/or test to stay? Out daycare continues to PCR test weekly and I’m wondering if others in DC are doing the same.

I’m really curious what sort of daycare is doing PCR tests weekly. I didn’t know of any doing that at any point of the pandemic.

Our preschool doesn’t have a formal test-to-stay policy, but if there was a suspected exposure in the classroom they do ask parents to test.

If there are multiple recent cases reported in a room, they will try to get kids to mask. But of course it can't be strictly followed.

No quarantines, even for family members, provided the child doesn't have any symptoms.

Staff is vaccinated-- it is somewhat mandatory for them. Kids aren't required to be vaccinated, but given nearly all the parents are in STEM, the vast majority are.

[Anonymous]

My upper NW Daycare is PCR testing weekly and I'm so over it. We had a LOT of vocal parents during the pandemic and I think the director was pressured to take extreme measures. I'm sure they're still getting pressure from the loud minority to keep doing it. Thankfully we're moving before the start of summer so my 2 yr old will only have to deal with it for a couple more months.

[Anonymous]

This thread is pretty surreal to read. We left the area and our new preschool doesn’t even have Covid-specific policies at this point. It’s just 24 hours after a fever. I’m not sure anyone tests for Covid at all here. And it’s fine!

[Anonymous]

Don’t hear about any adults being required to PCR for any reason, or even elementary school students. Enough already.

[Anonymous]

It will be interesting to see what the emergence of the new cracking variant which is ravaging China will do to policies. Perhaps we are far enough through the winter season that it will not be an issue in the United States.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It will be interesting to see what the emergence of the new cracking variant which is ravaging China will do to policies. Perhaps we are far enough through the winter season that it will not be an issue in the United States.

It's already here. It seems like everyone I know has someone in their family who tested positive over the holidays. Hospitalizations are ticking up too. Hopefully it won't be too bad.

[Anonymous]

Over the summer relaxed the quarantine/testing policies. Unless there's an "outbreak" in the class (2+ cases), in which case they contact the local health dept for guidance, the only consequence is that the positive kid stays home for 5 days. I think when there was an outbreak earlier this fall they did ask everyone to test after 5 days but accepted rapid tests.

They still "strongly recommend" masking, which the majority comply with. It's such a joke because they've made ZERO effort to upgrade air quality in the building. It's super old with window units for A/C. Gotta think it would be more effective to put portable air purifiers in each room than expect toddlers and preschoolers to mask in perpetuity. I've suggested they start a gofundme to pay for it, they don't understand the suggestion. Thankfully we are out of there in a few months.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It will be interesting to see what the emergence of the new cracking variant which is ravaging China will do to policies. Perhaps we are far enough through the winter season that it will not be an issue in the United States.

It's already here. It seems like everyone I know has someone in their family who tested positive over the holidays. Hospitalizations are ticking up too. Hopefully it won't be too bad.

Are they testing positive for the Kraken variant ??

[Anonymous]

Everyone (incl kids) must be vaccinated. No test to stay. Email if there is an exposure. That's it. Oh and obviously stay home 5 days if test positive.