Management of Respiratory Illnesses (Covid, Flu, RSV, etc.)

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) provide the following guidance for people who test positive for COVID: if your child tests positive, they are not required to stay home for five days. Instead, they should follow the core prevention strategies (listed below) to protect themselves and others from the health risks caused by respiratory viruses, such as the flu, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and Covid.

Core Prevention Strategies:

• If your child is symptomatic with a respiratory virus, keep them home, make sure they wear a mask, and have them stay away from others.
• Symptoms of a respiratory virus can include fever, chills, sore throat, cough, runny nose, and headache.
• Your child may return to school and normal activities when they are fever-free for at least 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication (e.g., Tylenol, Advil, Motrin) and once their symptoms have significantly improved.
• When returning to normal activities, the CDC and NYCDOH advise taking additional precautions for the next five days and wearing a mask.
• Testing early allows for treatment (such as Tamiflu and Paxlovid). These antivirals reduce the risk of severe illness and lower the chances of spreading the virus to others. Please discuss this with your child’s doctor.
• Staying up-to-date with immunizations and practicing good hygiene.

For more information, please see the following resources:
https://www.cdc.gov/respiratory-viruses/prevention/index.html
https://www.cdc.gov/respiratory-viruses/downloads/RVG-Summary-Graphic-508.pdf