The Latest: CDC offers guidance for in-person schooling

WASHINGTON — The nation’s top public health agency has released a roadmap for reopening U.S. schools in the middle of a pandemic.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is emphasizing mask wearing and social distancing. It says vaccination of teachers is important but not a prerequisite for reopening.

CDC officials say there is strong evidence in-person schooling can be done safely, especially at lower grade levels, and the guidance is targeted at schools that teach kindergarten up to 12th grade.

The agency also emphasized hand washing, disinfection of school facilities, diagnostic testing and contact tracing to find new infections and separate infected people. The CDC stressed the safest way to open schools is by making sure there is as little disease in a community as possible.

President Joe Biden wants most schools back to in-person teaching by the end of his first 100 days in office. The White House said this week a national strategy would be guided by science.

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THE VIRUS OUTBREAK:

CDC releases new guidance telling schools how to reopen. Japan expected to approve Pfizer vaccine within days; vaccines are key to holding the delayed Tokyo Olympics. Dr. Anthony Fauci says people must wear masks “for several, several months” as vaccinations are rolled out. The Victoria state has imposed five-day lockdown starting Saturday in response to a COVID-19 outbreak at a quarantine hotel; the Australian Open will continue but without crowds.

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