OPS Covid Policy (as of December 8th)
The Johnson County Department of Health and Environment (JCDHE) has updated its quarantine recommendations for individuals who are close contacts of positive COVID-19 cases. These recommendations follow the recently announced CDC quarantine protocol.
For those individuals identified as a close contact, the new recommendations include:
For those individuals identified as a close contact, the new recommendations include:
- An individual may return to school on Day 11 (Day of exposure is Day 0) of the 14-day quarantine if no symptoms have occurred throughout the quarantine.
- An individual may return to school on Day 8 of the 14-day quarantine if they have had no symptoms AND they received a negative PCR test (not rapid antigen) performed on or after Day 5 of the quarantine with the day of exposure counting as Day 0. If they have a PCR test done on Day 5, receive the results within 24 hours (Day 6), they still may not return until Day 8. If they develop symptoms between the test on Day 5 and Day 8, they may not return and are counted as presumed positive. Students will need to make sure they mask properly to prevent exposure of others in their class if they develop symptoms late in the incubation period and after they have returned to school. This means that the mask must cover both nose and mouth. Proper masking is one of the cornerstones of our mitigating measures and is particularly important for students returning early after exposure.
- The incubation period of the virus remains 14 days. If a student returns using the shortened quarantine guidelines and develops symptoms within the 14-day quarantine period, the student should stay home, call the school to report the symptoms and absence, and go for testing for COVID-19 or call their doctor. If the student develops symptom(s) at school, the nurse will notify the parents to pick up the student.
- If a student is currently in quarantine and the family believe that she/he qualifies for an early return to school under the updated guidance, the family should contact your school nurse.