Schools Brace For Monkeypox Outbreak With Little Guidance to Guide Response
Florida students began returning to classrooms last week with little state guidance to aid school leaders
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As the number of monkeypox cases spread across Florida, more and more school districts will have to contend with how to approach the disease as public school students, teachers and staff start their first day of school this week.
So far, districts haven鈥檛 gotten much guidance from state health officials, leaving those sorts of questions unanswered for the time being.
Cody Strother, of the Escambia County school district in the Panhandle, told the Phoenix that they haven鈥檛 yet gotten any guidance from the Florida Department of Health, though monkeypox cases have risen to 聽As of Monday, the state health agency for the first time reported one monkeypox case in Escambia County.
Without additional guidance for monkeypox, the Escambia school district will continue with COVID-related safety measures as its defense against monkeypox.
鈥淛ust a real emphasis on sanitation, making sure all our surfaces get cleaned and sanitized with regularity and making sure our facilities are as clean and as sanitary as possible,鈥� Strother told the Phoenix.
In northeast Flagler County, on the Atlantic coast, there鈥檚 one monkeypox case as of Monday.
Jason Wheeler, a communications staffer for the district, told the Phoenix that, 鈥渨e have no reason to really do anything right now,鈥� regarding additional safety measures for the school year.
Wheeler added that if the state Department of Health comes out with guidance regarding monkeypox spread, the district will 鈥渁bide by those recommendations.鈥�
But Escambia and Flagler are on the lower end of case numbers in Florida 鈥� nothing compared to the more than 300 cases each in Miami-Dade and Broward counties. In total, Florida is nearing 1,000 cases in the state, up almost tenfold
And, it鈥檚 not clear if the state health department is interested in sharing any guidance about monkeypox regarding Florida鈥檚 school districts.
Jeremy Redfern, the state health department鈥檚 spokesperson,:
鈥淲e are now getting requests for monkeypox guidance from school boards,鈥� said Redfern.
鈥淕uys鈥� c鈥檓on.鈥�
He continues: 鈥溙共曰逄爄sn鈥檛 going to let you put masks on kids for a disease that is almost exclusively spreading among adult men through sexual contact.鈥�
That is an unusual response, because new Florida laws prohibit school districts from implementing mask mandates on students following COVID-related 鈥減arental rights鈥� decisions on masks.
The Florida Phoenix reached out to Redfern several times for clarification on his tweet and have yet to receive a response.
On Aug. 4, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services declared the monkeypox virus a public health emergency, according to the Florida Phoenix. In July, the World Health Organization declared it a public health emergency of international concern.
Currently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that a majority of monkeypox cases have been among men who have sex with men, but emphasizes that 鈥渁ny one can get monkeypox.鈥� Monkeypox can spread through 鈥渃lose, personal, often skin-to-skin contact,鈥� as well as touching objects such as clothing, bedding, and surfaces that have been used by someone with monkeypox, the CDC says.
Education Week, a national education news site, for school leaders and notes that 鈥渢here鈥檚 no cause for panic among school and district leaders.鈥�
鈥淲hile there are likely to be additional pediatric cases as the country works to contain the outbreak, school leaders should be informed, not alarmed, said Wafaa El-Sadr, professor of epidemiology and medicine at Columbia University,鈥� Education Week reports.
Currently, it seems unlikely that monkeypox will spread widely in schools, Education Week reports, though it notes that some children are at a higher risk of severe illness if they are infected. That includes children 8-years-old and under and children with compromised immune systems or certain skin conditions.
is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Diane Rado for questions: [email protected]. Follow Florida Phoenix on and .
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