On April 16, Fauquier County Public Schools (FCPS) sent a letter home to families regarding the updated contact-traced quarantine policy.
FCPS was following Virginia Department of Health (VDH) guidance about a 14 day quarantine period after the last close contact with the positive COVID-19 individual. According to the FCPS letter, beginning yesterday, April 16, FCPS would “adjust this protocol for students in a quarantine status to allow for a return to school before the standard 14-day quarantine period…If a student does not have symptoms, quarantine may end after ten days or after seven days with a negative PCR test administered after day five.”
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) updated their guidelines about fully vaccinated individuals and quarantine. According to the FCPS letter, “Fully-vaccinated – Exempt from quarantine for six months from the date of the last vaccination (documentation required). Recovered from COVID-19 – Exempt from quarantine for 90 days from the date of a positive COVID-19 test (documentation required).”
FCPS advises parents to communicate with the school nurse after being placed in quarantine for the required documentation and return date. Their goal “is to keep our schools open for in person learning four days a week” and ask for “continued cooperation of all families and staff in adhering to all established mitigation protocols to keep schools open without any disappointments,” according to the FCPS letter.