ISDH Issues Updated Covid-19 Guidelines for Schools
August 28, 2020 Author: Indiana State Department of Health
The Indiana State Department of Health has updated guidelines for state school districts dealing with the Novel Coronavirus pandemic.
What's New
Symptoms streamlined to match CDC screening tool.
Household members are close contacts and should quarantine for 14 days from date of last exposure to the case.
Person of interest and anyone who lives in the same household should quarantine while waiting for test results.
Anyone with a negative test who is not a close contact may return to school if:
- Fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medications
- Symptoms resolved
- No doctor’s note required
Symptoms
- Temperature 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit or higher when taken by mouth (or school board policy if threshold is lower)
- Sore throat
- New uncontrolled cough that causes difficulty breathing (for students with chronic allergic/asthmatic cough, a change in their cough from baseline)
- Diarrhea, vomiting, or abdominal pain
- New onset of severe headache, especially with a fever
- Loss of taste or smell
Anyone with symptoms of COVID-19 who had a negative test and is not a close contact of someone with confirmed COVID-19 may return to school:
- Must be 24 hours fever free without the use of fever-reducing medications
- Other symptoms resolved
- No doctor’s note required
- If also a close contact, must complete 14-day quarantine
Anyone with symptoms who is not tested must isolate, and anyone in the household (including siblings) are considered close contacts and must quarantine.
If a someone who has symptoms of COVID-19 tests positive or does NOT get tested for COVID-19, then siblings and household members should be considered close contacts and advised to quarantine.
If the symptomatic person without a positive test is diagnosed with another condition that explains the symptoms, or tests negative, then no quarantine for close contacts is necessary
If not tested, a provider’s note with alternate diagnosis will be needed to return to school.
A symptomatic person and anyone living in their household should quarantine while waiting for test results.
