The U. S. Department of Education The U. S. Department of Health will offer free COVID-19 testing to school districts across the country, Biden’s leadership announced Wednesday, as positive cases are expected to do with the winter season.
“We inspired [districts] to use this flexible COVID-19 check offer, which schools can use, for example, to get checks from school nurses’ offices and main offices; send check kits to students’ or parents’ homes; or distribute them by other means put those valuable safeguards in the hands of academics, parents, and those who want them,” Undersecretary for Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development Roberto Rodriguez said in a statement.
The Florida law passed by Gov. Ron DeSantis prohibits any business, school, or government entity from forcing a user to take a COVID-19 test. A spokesperson for the U. S. Department of Educationtold Florida Phoenix that interested school districts don’t want to pass through their respective states, but register with the federal government.
Neither DeSantis nor the Florida Department of Health responded to a request for comment.
Districts will be guilty of determining how many kits to order, how they will be needed, and where they deserve to be delivered. The spokesperson also said that schools will be able to place an order for testing each week and are advised to ask for an amount that they can distribute in a few weeks.
The program will be conducted in cooperation with the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. U. S. School districts will apply for control in early December. After a 7-10 business day processing period, districts will order control kits directly through an HHS portal.
The number of COVID-19 cases at the end of 2023 is especially low than in previous years. Florida reported 27,115 cases in October 2023, a 40% reduction from October 2022 and a 65. 5% reduction from October 2021.
COVID-19 positivity rates saw a slight decline this fall, from a reported weekly rate of 14. 5% on Aug. 26 to a reported rate of 8. 2% on Nov. 18, according to the CDC. However, since 2020, annual positivity rates have increased. It traditionally peaks in mid-summer and mid-winter.
Here’s the letter from the U. S. Department of Education. U. S. :
Dear colleague,
Thank you for your continued determination to keep students and staff safe and keep schools open for in-person learning. Although the COVID-19 virus is transmitted year-round in the United States, infection rates are generally highest in the fall and winter months. To help prevent the spread of COVID-19, the U. S. Department of Education (ED), in partnership with the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), is pleased to offer COVID testing -19 immediate and free at home for interested Local Education Agencies (LEAs).
LEAs can request immediate, over-the-counter COVID-19 antigen self-tests for their students, families, staff, and school communities. These self-tests are easy to use and can play a vital role in containing the spread of the virus in schools and communities. We inspire LEAs to use this offer of loose COVID-19 tests, which schools can use, for example, to obtain tests at school nurses’ offices and main offices; send test kits home with students or parents; or distribute through other means to put those valuable safeguards in the hands of students, parents, and staff who want them. The latest data on COVID-19 prevention in schools, along with testing recommendations, can be found in the Operational Guide for K-12 Schools and Early Care and Education Programs to Support Effective Learning in User Safety and COVID-19 Mitigation Guidance on the Giant Network can be found at https://www. cdc. gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention. HTML.
To participate in the COVID-19 Test Acquisition Program, LEAs will need to complete a one-time registration at this link: https://protect-ows. hhs. gov/ASPR_COVID_DX. Prior to enrollment, LEAs will be required to designate an Official Point of Contact (POC), who will be guilty of requesting COVID-19 self-test kits and managing their delivery and dissemination to the district. No other entity or user will access the registration link. When registering online, the designated POC will have to provide critical data, adding the LEA ID, LEA name, and LEA physical address. All submissions must be verified. So, make sure your LEA data matches the data in our public school district (ed. gov) search formula.
Once enrolled, EFCs will be required to participate in a brief education that includes instructions on how to access free COVID-19 self-tests within the HHS administration’s Health Partner Order Portal (HPOP) for Strategic Preparedness and Response. This educational webinar will take position on December 6, 2023 at 1 p. m. EST. Following a successful finishing touch of the one-time registration process, LEAs will get instructions on how to engage in education. LEAs who are unable to attend the education scheduled for December 6 will have access to a recording of the education. and auxiliary materials. LEAs will be able to request COVID-19 testing after participating in education, and orders will continue while supplies last. Orders will be shipped directly to a designated shipping address within the school district and will arrive within approximately 14 days. For more information on the COVID-19 Testing Supply Program, stop at https://www. ed. gov/Coronavirus.
Kind regards
by Christian Casale, Florida Phoenix November 29, 2023
The U. S. Department of Education The U. S. Department of Health will provide COVID-19 on the loose to school districts across the country, Biden’s leadership announced Wednesday, as positive cases are expected to increase with the winter season.
“We inspired [districts] to use this flexible offer of COVID-19 checks, which schools can use, for example, to get checks from school nurses’ offices and main offices; send check kits to students’ or parents’ homes; or distribute them by other means put those valuable safeguards in the hands of academics, parents, and those who want them,” Undersecretary for Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development Roberto Rodriguez said in a statement.
The Florida law passed by Gov. Ron DeSantis prohibits any business, school, or government entity from forcing a user to take a COVID-19 test. A spokesperson for the U. S. Department of Educationtold Florida Phoenix that interested school districts don’t want to pass through their respective states, but register with the federal government.
Neither DeSantis nor the Florida Department of Health responded to a request for comment.
Districts will be responsible for determining how many kits to order, how they will be needed and where they deserve to be delivered. The spokesperson also said schools will be able to place an order for tests each week and are advised to order a quantity that they can distribute over a few weeks.
The program will be conducted in cooperation with the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. U. S. School districts will apply for control in early December. After a 7-10 business day processing period, districts will order control kits directly through an HHS portal.
The number of COVID-19 cases at the end of 2023 is significantly lower than in previous years. Florida reported 27,115 cases in October 2023, a low of 40% since October 2022 and a low of 65. 5% since October 2021.
COVID-19 positivity rates saw a slight decline this fall, from a reported weekly rate of 14. 5% on Aug. 26 to a reported rate of 8. 2% on Nov. 18, according to the CDC. However, since 2020, annual positivity rates have increased. It traditionally peaks in mid-summer and mid-winter.
Here’s the letter from the U. S. Department of Education. U. S. :
November 29, 2023
Dear colleague,
Thank you for your continued determination to keep students and staff safe and keep schools open for in-person learning. Although the COVID-19 virus is transmitted year-round in the United States, infection rates are generally highest in the fall and winter months. To help prevent the spread of COVID-19, the U. S. Department of Education is working to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The U. S. Department of Health and Human Services (ED), in partnership with the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, has been a major contributor to the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. The U. S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is pleased to offer immediate, free, at-home COVID-19 testing to interested Local Education Agencies (LEAs).
LEAs can request immediate, over-the-counter COVID-19 antigen self-tests for their students, families, staff, and school communities. These self-tests are easy to use and can play a vital role in containing the spread of the virus in schools and communities. We inspire LEAs to use this offer of loose COVID-19 tests, which schools can use, for example, to obtain tests at school nurses’ offices and main offices; send test kits home with students or parents; or distribute through other means to put those valuable safeguards in the hands of students, parents, and staff who want them. The latest data on COVID-19 prevention in schools, along with testing recommendations, can be found in the Operational Guide for K-12 Schools and Early Care and Education Programs to Support Effective Learning in User Safety and COVID-19 Mitigation Guidance on the Giant Network can be found at https://www. cdc. gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/prevention. HTML.
To participate in the COVID-19 Test Acquisition Program, LEAs will need to complete a one-time registration at this link: https://protect-ows. hhs. gov/ASPR_COVID_DX. Prior to enrollment, LEAs will be required to designate an Official Point of Contact (POC), who will be guilty of requesting COVID-19 self-test kits and managing their delivery and dissemination to the district. No other entity or user will access the registration link. When registering online, the designated POC will have to provide critical data, adding the LEA ID, LEA name, and LEA physical address. All submissions must be verified. So, make sure your LEA data matches the data in our public school district (ed. gov) search formula.
Once registered, POCs will be required to participate in brief education that includes information on how to access free COVID-19 self-monitoring within the HHS Administration’s Health Partner Ordering Portal (HPOP) for Strategic Preparedness and Response. This educational webinar will take place on December 6, 2023 at 1 p. m. ITS T. Upon successful completion of the single registration process, LEAs will receive instructions on how to participate in education. LEAs who are unable to attend education scheduled for December 6 will have access to a recording of the education and supporting materials. LEAs will be able to request COVID-19 checks after participating in education, and orders will continue while supplies last. Orders will be shipped directly to a designated delivery address within the school district and will arrive in approximately 14 days. For more information about the COVID-19 check acquisition program, visit https://www. ed. gov/Coronavirus.
Kind regards
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Christian covers education, politics, and anything else that interests you for Florida Phoenix. In the past, he worked as a reporter and editor for the Independent Florida Alligator.
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