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Classes are back to school this week in many school districts, including Chicago Public Schools. As the pandemic continues to evolve, this year will bring new protocols for Covid-19.
“Science supports every change the CDC makes,” he said. Dr. Geraldine Luna, Medical Director of the Chicago Department of Public Health. “Reports of cases in schools are low and we expect them to remain low as we vaccinate children and send them to school.”
As parents of unvaccinated children wonder if vaccination is necessary at this stage of the epidemic, an allergist and immunologist Dr. Juanita Mora Not only is it still valuable, but it’s more reliable than ever, he says.
“We have now administered millions of vaccines to children, and they are safe and effective.” Let’s take heart, let’s get back to normalcy, let’s protect our children and vaccinate them so they can have a good school year,” said Dr. Mora. “It protects not only them, but their grandparents, their communities and our country because children are often part of the transition, keeping their schools open.”
In the year 2022 has brought a new health concern: an outbreak of monkeypox, with many parents worried about the virus reaching schools. Dr. Luna said he is optimistic that CDPH will not be a problem for students.
“Here in Chicago, we haven’t seen children get measles, and that’s very promising,” Dr. Luna said. “The vaccines are being released now. In Europe, we’re starting to see the downside of those issues and whatever we see in Europe will be reflected here in the United States. So hopefully the chances of seeing a kid in a Chicago MPV are less than zero.
Chicago Public Schools’ 2022 Covid protocols don’t include universal mask requirements for students or teachers, but Dr. Mora said there are some situations in which parents should consider masking their children.
“If someone has a very immunological problem at home, you can consider masking the child, especially, for example, a grandparent who is undergoing cancer chemotherapy or radiation treatment or some or a brother or sister or a newborn baby at home as well.
Dr Lunam urges parents to get their children vaccinated against the flu this year.
“Flu season is coming up really fast right now. September is just around the corner and it is very harmful to children and the elderly, it attacks those two extremes in ages. So the important thing is to get your child vaccinated, consult with your doctor and get them protected,” said Dr. Luna.
The rollout of the Covid vaccine for children under 5 was hailed by some parents earlier this summer, but vaccination rates for that group remain low. Dr. Mora is urging parents to vaccinate children under 5 years of age.
“Especially now, they’re going back to kindergarten, pre-K, etc. We have administered millions of vaccines in these age groups, including myself, to children as young as six months of age, and they have all worked well,” said Dr. Mora.
A recent outbreak of poliomyelitis in New York City has alarmed public health officials there, and Dr. Luna said the Chicago Department of Public Health continues to monitor water systems here in extreme caution.
“The last reported case in Illinois was in 1970, and it was from a person who came from another country with polio,” Dr. Luna said. As always we are making sure to test our water system. We have been checking out many surveillance systems you have found, but now we have developed this vigilance and surveillance system which is even better.
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