Over 2,000 Tennessee Children Test Positive For COVID In 2 Weeks As Schools Reopen In State
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
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Thousands of school-aged children tested positive for the novel coronavirus in Tennessee over the past two weeks, coinciding with students' return to classrooms across the state.
Data updated by the Tennessee Department of Health on Tuesday showed more than 2,000 new COVID-19 cases diagnosed among young people between August 4 and August 18, with a handful of counties reporting upwards of 200 infections during the designated time period. Statistics accounted for positive cases reported in children between 5 and 18 years old. High school-aged children composed the largest fraction of Tennessee's new youth cases, making up more than half of the health department's two-week tally.
Tennessee's Davidson, Hamilton and Shelby Counties saw the most significant outbreaks affecting school-aged children since the first week of August, according to the health department's latest report. Those three counties have also confirmed the highest concentrations of COVID-19 cases in Tennessee.
Although information about virus transmission among the state's youth population provides general insights into potential risks associated with in-person learning models, the current data does not offer specific information about cases linked to individual schools. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee advocated for full transparency with regard to school-specific outbreaks earlier this month, but backpedaled slightly in comments to reporters on Tuesday.
During a news conference, Lee explained that while school districts will inform their respective communities about closures prompted by COVID-19 outbreaks, the state will refrain from publishing information about case counts linked to schools. He said the decision was rooted in protecting the identities of children, and keeping their personal details away from the public sphere.
Lee faced backlash from state residents who opposed schools reopening last month, as Tennessee continued to report an increasing number of COVID-19 cases.
A demonstrator displays a sign protesting Tennessee schools reopening during a rally in Nashville on July 27. Data published by the Tennessee Department of Health shows more than 2,000 school-aged children tested positive for COVID-19 between August 4 and August 18.Brett Carlsen/Getty
Despite a considerable spike in infections reported in June and July, most of Tennessee's school districts—more than 100 of roughly 140 statewide—allowed students to return to classrooms by the second week of August, according to The Tennessean.
Of those districts that resumed in-person learning this month, at least 97 confirmed positive cases of the novel coronavirus connected to schools after reopening, the newspaper reported last Thursday. In what is becoming a pattern among states where students returned to schools at the beginning of August, multiple Tennessee school systems suspended physical attendance options in response to virus cases.
In Hamilton County, where Chattanooga is located, education officials ordered two schools to temporarily close after they identified positive COVID-19 cases during students' first day back to classes. Nashville's public schools, in Davidson County, reopened for the 2020-21 academic year on August 4. However, the district's director, Adrienne Battle, is requiring schools to conduct classes remotely until Labor Day, at the earliest.
Almost 138,800 people have tested positive for COVID-19 across Tennessee since the pandemic began, resulting in about 2,500 deaths as of Tuesday, August 18, according to the state's health department.
Newsweek reached out to Tennessee's Department of Health and Department of Education for comments but did not receive replies in time for publication.
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Should they continue going to class and infect the teachers?
Some may have been infected by a asymptomatic teacher or adult employee.
Isn't that what Trump wants? So his sheep-followers are bound to agree with him. (Have they EVER disagreed with him? LOL)
I just want to take a moment to recommend getting news from somewhere other than Newsweek. They always have an agenda.
Anyway, looking at the story:
OK, so I looked at the schedule of school openings for Tennessee and they all were supposed to open in early to mid-August.
A look at how school districts throughout Tennessee plan to reopen after coronavirus
But if you look at this graph (which the Newsweek story linked to), Covid cases in kids clearly began spiking in June and really took off in early July. I don't see how that has a cause and effect connection to school reopening in August. Things look pretty flat in August. They might even be trending down. It seems like Newsweek has a bit of an agenda - they want the reader to think kids in school are spreading the virus more than if they stayed home - so they weren't going to show us the whole chart.
Not that I'm in a hurry to send kids back to school. I'm not. I just don't think it's helpful to fudge the data. Makes it hard to trust media or officials when they say we "need" to do this or that.
Where does the 2000 number come from? Right in the story it says only 97 students have tested positive since school started and did they actually catch the virus from going to school. Also if they tested positive I doubt they would still be attending school passing it along, they would be in quarantine, no?, and all those in contact would be tested and/or quarantined also. So why the panic story?
Shelby County doesn't start school until Aug 31. Hamilton County started on Aug 12, and is offering remote and online learning.
That is two of the counties with the largest increases. I think it is silly to blame it on school reopenings.
Found Davidson County.
Virtual learning in all schools for that county.
A little disingenuous headline for the article, I think.
That could be because we tested 143,000 fewer people per day the first 12 days of August than we did in July.
Could very well be. The tracking of cases has been chaotic all over the country. More information would certainly be welcome. I just don't think you can look at the data presented and reach the conclusion Newsweek did.
If testing is voluntary then eventually you'll run out of volunteers, the only way beyond this point is to make testing mandatory and I don't think that option will go over well with the public, especially since testing positive means being in quarantine for two weeks even if you're asymptomatic.
I read the article and this is what I see. The mention of the 2000 cases among children is not a direct inference that those cases were caused through school attendance. The mention of the 2000 cases is a suggestion that continued in person schooling could spread the virus further. If 2000 schoolchildren have it and children go to school every day then the number will grow.
I don't think the article is claiming they all or any certain number of them contracted the virus at school.
The implication I'm getting is that we have these numbers and sending kids to school every day now will likely make it worse.