COVID-19 positivity rates hover above 10% as Miami schools reopen for second semester
Miami-Dade County Public Schools reconvened Monday for the second semester of an unprecedented school year as the county’s COVID-19 positivity rates did not meet one of the established criteria for reopening schools.
Miami-Dade County’s 14-day positivity rate is 10.57% and rising. That doesn’t jibe with the criteria the district set in deciding when to reopen schools.
Medical and public health experts informing the school district on its reopening plans approved eight criteria this summer for reopening schools. The first one: A sustained COVID-19 positivity rate of less than 10%, trending toward 5%, for 14 days.
The county’s positivity rate has been trending upward over the past two weeks, going from 7.70 percent on Tuesday, Dec. 22, to 10.96 percent as of Tuesday’s report, according to the Florida Department of Health.
Miami-Dade on Tuesday reported 3,347 additional confirmed cases of COVID-19 and one new death, according to Florida’s Department of Health. The county has a total of 311,606 confirmed cases and 4,257 deaths, the most in the state.
Also among the criteria: A steady reduction in number of individuals hospitalized.
Miami-Dade hospitalizations for COVID-19 complications increased Tuesday from 1,151 to 1,158, according to Miami-Dade County’s “New Normal” dashboard. According to Tuesday’s data, 165 people were discharged and 127 people were admitted.
District officials have said that not all eight criteria must be met.
The school district said in a statement Monday that the district’s 14-day quarantine procedures remain in place, and that the district will continue to seek guidance from the local health department, its medical adviser and its medical expert panel before any changes to COVID-19 procedures.
“This District remains steadfast in its commitment to prioritizing the health and well-being of our students and employees,” wrote spokeswoman Jackie Calzadilla.
She said the district continues to urge parents and employees to wear a facial covering, handwash routinely and practice social distancing. She added that enhanced sanitization protocols remain in place at schools.
Parents and staff must complete their corresponding pre-arrival health screenings. Employees were reminded of the district’s free COVID-19 testing sites.
Student attendance continues to lag when compared to last school year. On Monday, 88.8% of students were marked present compared to 92.6% on Jan. 6, 2020, the first day back from winter break. Attendance data for employees is not yet available, according to the school district.
Teachers are not at the top of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ priority list for the COVID-19 vaccination rollout. DeSantis said Tuesday the priority is the state’s elderly population.
A spokeswoman for the United Teachers of Dade said they’ve heard from several teachers calling for a district-wide quarantine and for moving teaching and learning online for two weeks. An informal social media poll with about 500 responses said 93% supported a delayed physical start date.
Miami Herald staff writer Devoun Cetoute contributed to this report.
This story was originally published January 5, 2021 at 8:07 PM.