NLS Health & Safety Policy Update

Our Health and Safety Committee met yesterday to conduct a 30-day review of our health & safety policy.

At the opening of school, when we had very low community transmission rate, we wanted to be cautious, which is why we created the Off-Island Travel Policy. As always, our intention is to be attentive to the needs of our families and the school community as a whole. Now that we have moved into the red zone as an island, our policy has to evolve to keep a safe school environment.

RED ZONE SAFETY & TRAVEL POLICY (effective 10/16/20, 5 p.m.)

o Define your social bubble. A bubble consists of the people, such as caregivers or other close contacts, who you see daily/weekly and you trust to have the same high standard of Covid-19 precautions. Open communication needs to be part of your plan so all members of your bubble communicate if any increased risk factors arise.
o Every member of your bubble must wear a mask whenever in public as per town guidelines.
o Keep all social gatherings to fewer than 10 people; Avoid hosting and attending birthday parties, dinner parties, or any other potential spreading events.
o Be outside whenever possible when socializing with others.
o If you feel that you, or a member of your bubble, were in a high-risk situation, your child must get a Covid-19 test before returning to school.
o All your visitors from off-island must follow the Massachusetts State Travel Order Guidelines.*
o As per the Massachusetts State Travel Order Guidelines,* all visitors entering Massachusetts, including returning residents, (except from these low-risk states) must quarantine for 14 days or produce a negative Covid-19 test result that has been administered up to 72-hours prior to arrival in Massachusetts.

* Massachusetts State Travel Order Guidelines: All visitors entering Massachusetts, including returning residents, who have traveled to a state that is not a low-risk state, are required to: 1) Complete the Massachusetts Travel Form prior to arrival, unless you are visiting from a lower-risk state designated by the Department of Public Health. 2) Quarantine for 14 days or produce a negative COVID-19 test result that has been administered up to 72-hours prior to your arrival in Massachusetts. In determining whether you are required to complete the Massachusetts Travel Form and whether you may be required to comply with the 14-day quarantine requirement, you will be treated as “arriving from” a place other than a Covid-19 lower-risk state if you were present in any State or jurisdiction not on the list of Covid-19 lower-risk states for more than a transitory period of time in the last 14 days. Travelers from Covid-19 lower-risk States are not required to fill out the Massachusetts Travel Form and do not need to quarantine. States are included on the list based on meeting two criteria: average daily cases per 100K below 6 AND positive test rate below 5%, both measured as a 7-day rolling average. Data is from covidexitstrategy.org.

NANTUCKET COTTAGE HOSPITAL TESTING UPDATE

FREE Covid-19 testing for asymptomatic individuals will be available at Nantucket Cottage Hospital starting Friday, October 16 through the state’s Stop the Spread strategic testing program. With Nantucket designated by the state as a high-risk area for coronavirus transmission, the island will become the latest community to launch a Stop the Spread testing site. The program supports the testing of asymptomatic individuals to stop the spread of Covid-19 by providing low barrier, free, and easy-to-access testing for those with no symptoms. The state will provide funding for up to 75 asymptomatic Covid-19 tests per day at no cost on a first-come, first-served basis.

In other good news, the test that will be used for the Stop the Spread will be the child-friendly anterior nasal swab.

Additionally, for those of you who are seeking testing off-island, we have a list of all testing facilities in Massachusetts, which can be viewed here.

Nantucket Lighthouse School's Health and Safety Committee

Alicia Lynn (Covid-19 Officer)
Christine Hanson
Candice Tetrault
Maryann Hedaa
Jillian Fraker
Alana Cullen
Jean Witt

Consultants:
Leah Davis, RN
Meredith Lepore, RN, FNP-BC
Roberto Santamaria