WISH-TV | wishtv.com
State health officials on Wednesday announced changes to classroom quarantine protocols that will go into effect on Monday. The announcement was made during Gov. Eric Holcomb’s weekly virtual press conference.
Box
Indiana State Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Kristina Box said, effective Monday, ISDH will no longer require quarantine or contact tracing if students and teachers remain at least three feet apart and wear a mask at all times while in the classroom.
These quarantine changes do not apply to exposures that happen during lunch, athletics, band, or other school settings.
Box said some schools had only been able to separate students by three to four feet, but the data show the reduced spacing has not resulted in increased cases. Box also cited the ongoing burden a 14-day quarantine has had on schools, students and families as a reason for a change in the quarantine and distancing rules inside the classroom.
State health officials also announced more than one million KN95 masks will be sent to schools throughout Indiana. The number will be enough to provide teachers, administrators and staff members with 10 masks each.
Box said 600,000 additional masks will be sent to schoolchildren in kindergarten through sixth grade.