Definition of school outbreak changes as COVID-19 cases rise in Manitoba

Manitoba education and public health officials are redefining COVID-19 school outbreaks in order to have more consistent reporting and bring forward preventative measures, Manitoba's top doctor says.

An outbreak will now be declared when there are at least three school-associated cases identified within 14 days of each other in students, teachers or staff within a cohort, Chief Provincial Public Health Officer Dr. Brent Roussin said Tuesday.

The cases must be assessed as potentially acquired in school and linked to a known case in the school setting or a school-sanctioned extracurricular activity.

"Certainly, we cannot say there is zero risk for kids from COVID-19 … but we need to balance that risk of COVID with the risk of societal isolation that has played on the mental and physical well-being of children," Roussin said in an online news conference.

Close contacts within schools where the risk is deemed to be high will now only have to self-isolate for 10 days, which aligns with provincial quarantine measures, he said. Testing will be recommended after seven days have passed.

Vaccination status and consistent mask use will be considered when assessing risk levels.

Close contacts who are fully immunized and are asymptomatic or have had COVID-19 within the past six months won't have to self-isolate, Roussin said.

Isolation requirements may change if there is increased community transmission.

"Reducing community transmission is the best way to reduce any risk of cases within school," Roussin said.

"Staying home when you have symptoms, no matter how mild … wearing masks, physical distancing, washing our hands are all proven ways to reduce transmission in the community."

As well, "getting vaccinated is one of our biggest tools to protect our children," Roussin said.

Last week, the province resumed reporting cases linked to schools on its online dashboard. 

As of Monday, there had been 56 cases linked to 38 schools, involving 47 students and nine staff members, since the start of the school year on Sept. 7.

The school with the most cases so far is Mitchell Elementary School in Mitchell, Man., which had five cases as of Monday.

The Steinbach-area Hanover School Division — which has roughly 8,500 students and 1,100 staff — is the division with the highest number of cases, with 18 as of Monday.

The next highest number of school cases is in Winnipeg's Louis Riel School Division, which has six cases. That division has nearly twice as many students and staff as Hanover.

Schools will continue to send notification letters to close contacts' homes and the broader school community, deputy education minister Dana Rudy said at Tuesday's news conference.

"School leaders will be asked to report as part of their data collection whether students and staff were consistently wearing masks during the period of exposure so that public health can use that information to really assess the level of risk," she said.

A case in a school doesn't mean that the infection was acquired or transmitted in the school, the province says.

Rapid testing

Rudy says schools have ordered rapid antigen tests for school workers who choose not to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

The aim is for these workers to be tested three times a week, with at least one test at the school and the other two at home.

"Employees are expected to record and log their tests and make proof of testing available," she said.

There are no plans at this time to make rapid testing available to students.

The cost of antigen testing will be borne by Manitoba Education for now. 

Manitoba Teachers' Society president James Bedford says he thinks it's important for the province to foot that bill, rather than leaving it up to school divisions to pay.

"We also want to respect an individual's right to choose. And when you're going to overlay costs onto that, then you're really taking away the choice of a member," he said.

Tuesday's announcement drew criticism from opposition parties, who wondered why the changes hadn't been announced earlier.

Manitoba Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont says the Progressive Conservative government needs to "get their act together."

"It is ridiculous that this guidance is coming out now, three weeks into the school year, and just before a fourth wave with a delta [coronavirus] variant" that is highly contagious, he wrote in an emailed statement.

Nello Altomare, the Opposition NDP's education critic, says Tuesday's announcement brings uncertainty to students, parents and guardians.

"Teachers and school leaders spent all summer getting ready for the school year — why couldn't the PCs do the same? Families deserve a government that does the work ahead of time to keep our kids safe and keep schools open." 

Bedford, though, said he's glad to see the changes are solidly based on the latest data. The information provided Tuesday gives some clarity to people who work in schools, the MTS president said.