How the St. Johns County Community Has Responded to the New Quarantine Procedure
As our first quarter of the 2021-2022 school year comes to a close, there has been an announcement regarding a new quarantine procedure for St. Johns County students. This statement from News4Jax includes that “Based on (the Florida Department of Health’s) new ruling, you have a choice whether to quarantine your child or not, if they have no (COVID) symptoms.” Due to the amount of controversy regarding the Covid-19 pandemic, there are those that approve of these new guidelines and those that believe this decision is outright outrageous. Students who came into contact with another student with Covid-19 now can remain on campus as long as they show no symptoms. However, parents may still choose to quarantine their child for up to seven consecutive days provided they are not sick.
According to Dr. Sunil Joshi, President of the Duval County Medical Society Foundation claims “you can imagine how quickly people are going to get infected” as students remain in close proximity to one another. Her statement is a voice of one of many that stand against the state’s decision. On the other hand, Elizabeth Wittstadt, head of a local chapter of the Moms for Liberty organization, applauds this decision with her announcement that “many healthy children have been kept at home when they could be at school and tracking that they were not getting sick.” She speaks for dozens of parents and officials that stand on behalf of this new procedure.
By: Ariel Rademeyer
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