CityCouncilUpdate_MayorSlides_111220 Final — File 210902

School Reopening Update November 12, 2020

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Daily New Cases by State (as of 11/9) Source: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/ 3

Daily New Cases in Massachusetts (as of 11/11) Source: https://www.mass.gov/doc/covid-19-dashboard-november-10-2020/download

MDPH State Data: Hospital Admissions (through 11/10) 5 Source: https://www.mass.gov/info-details/covid-19-response- reporting# covid-19-daily-dashboard-

Somerville Case Data: Positive Cases Identified by MDPH (through 11/10) 6 ▹As of Tuesday, 11/10/20: ▸1,712 positive confirmed cases (PCR test) ▸123 positive probable cases (antigen or antibody) ▸47 fatalities

MARCH 1-31 7

8 APRIL 1-30

9 MAY 1-31

10 JUNE 1-30

11 JULY 1-31

12 AUGUST 1-31

13 SEPT 1-30

14 OCT 1-28

15 Somerville Confirmed COVID-19 POSITIVE Cases March 1 - October 28 Each frame is one month

Science-based approach 16 Expert Advisors to Somerville & Region ● Dr. Samuel Scarpino (Northeastern) ● Dr. Paul Biddinger (MGH) ● Dr. Rochelle Walensky (MGH) ● Dr. Mauricio Santillana (Harvard) ● Dr. Alessandro Vespignani (Northeastern) ● Dr. Louise Ivers (Harvard/MGH) ● Dr. Sanjat Kanjilal (Brigham & Women’s Hospital) ● Dr. Michael Mina (Harvard/Brigham & Women’s Hospital) City Testing Working Group ● Dr. Amy Bantham, ICS ● Kristen Stelljes, ICS ● Glenda Soto, SPS ● Liz Gaskell, Broad Institute ● Doug Kress, ICS ● Jeff Curley, SPS ● Omar Boukili, ICS ● Tim Snyder, ICS Building Experts ● Rich Raich, City of Somerville ● Fitzmeyer and Tocci ● PMA (OPM) ● Doug Kress, ICS ● Omar Boukili, ICS ● Tim Snyder, ICS Building Experts Safer Teachers, Safer Students PK12 Testing Collaborative Health Inequity experts ● Dr. Nancy Krieger (Harvard School of Public Health) ● Dr. Jarvis Chen (Harvard School of Public Health) ● Dr. Maia Majumder (MIT) ● Marie-Laure Charpignon (MIT)

School reopening ▹While case counts are increasing, so is the need to get our children back to school for in-person learning. ▹But we need to use every tool available to do so in a way that keeps students, staff, and the community safe ▹The suite of safety measures proposed by the City and SPS will put Somerville in the strongest possible position to have a safe and sustainable school reopening

School reopening ▹The state is now urging all schools to reopen for in-person learning. But they are not providing the tools needed to do so safely. ▸There is strong evidence that children catch and transmit the virus and can cause household outbreaks ▸Minority communities disproportionately bear the health impacts of COVID-19 ▸Contact tracing in MA currently fails to identify the source of at least half of infections ▸The state is not supporting testing in schools

Building & Ventilation Achieve “Low Risk” Score Routine COVID- 19 Testing and Contact Tracing Protocols Operational In-Person Social Distancing and Other Safety Measures In Place Start Phased Re-Opening External Factors ● Community incidence and transmission ● Evolving science and research ● Availability of material and human resources Internal Factors

In-Person Social Distancing and Other Safety Measures In Place Internal Factors

Safety Measures ▹School & Classroom Setup ▸Desks & tables spaced 6 feet apart - ✓ ▸Sinks or sanitizer stations in classrooms - ✓ ▸Virus shields placed in some high traffic areas - ✓ ▸Wellness room in every school - ✓ ▸In-building protocols - ✓ ▹Enhanced Cleaning ▸Plan for enhanced daily cleaning & sanitizing - ✓ ▸DPW purchased more electrostatic sprayers to disinfect buildings - ✓

Safety Measures - continued ▹Masks, Face Shields, Gloves ▸SPS has ordered 270,000 masks that meet BOH health and safety guidelines; 24,000 pairs of gloves; and hundreds of face shields - ✓ ▹Bus Transportation ▸Significantly limited; One student per row on bus

Routine COVID- 19 Testing and Contact Tracing Protocols Operational Internal Factors

Board of Health COVID-19 Testing Order ▹Requires K-12 schools to submit a COVID-19 transmission prevention implementation plan to the Board of Health ▹Must require ongoing testing of teachers, employees, and others providing ongoing services in school buildings Final BOH order: https://www.somervillema.gov/sites/default/files/boh-order-school- testing-final-11-2-2020.pdf

To meet the BOH order ▹The Testing Working Group is recommending: ▸A School Committee policy requiring that all students and staff be tested regularly and receive the flu vaccine • Provides for medical exemptions ▸A transmission prevention implementation plan

Why require COVID-19 testing? ▹Understanding how the virus is impacting our students, teachers, and staff allows us to make decisions in real time based on our own situation, not a guess based on what’s happening around us ▹For this to work, we need to understand how the virus is moving across the entire in-person SPS community

With required COVID-19 testing we will be able to: ▹Quickly identify COVID-positive individuals who are asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic to prevent further spread in school and community ▹Trace close contacts of positive individuals ▹Isolate and quarantine positive or potential positive individuals ▹Rule out COVID-19 for individuals who present COVID-19-like symptoms, allowing earlier return to school

Criteria Used to Select Approach + Testing Partner ▹Flexibility: Partner and City/SPS have ability to change approach to adapt to changing phases and situation ▹Sustainability: We have the ability to maintain logistics and cost over time ▹Acceptability: Staff and students feel comfortable taking the test; it is as non-invasive as possible and individuals can easily access the tests ▹Reliability: We have confidence in the results we are getting (high specificity is especially desirable) ▹Ability to test minors: Partner has ability to work with a student population ▹Rapid results: Test results are ideally returned within 24 hours after receipt of samples Criteria used to evaluate 23 testing options

COVID-19 Testing Partners Selected Ginkgo Bioworks/ Immune Observatory Tufts University/ Broad/Cataldo Flexibility Legal agreement between district and Ginkgo for in kind donation, can book now for November but likely not Thanksgiving week Incentive to work with Somerville, developing methodology for surrounding communities targeting Somerville and Medford, ongoing relationship Sustainability Free, one-time donation for staff baseline only City administers test $25 per individual test (shared cost = $12.50), $40 per pool of 8-13, City hires Cataldo to administer test at $75 per staff per hour and $28 PPE per staff per day Acceptability Saliva Anterior nasal Anterior nasal, pooled Reliability PCR: 100% all PCR: 100% all Ability to Test Minors No Yes Rapid Results Within 24-72 hours, includes overnight shipping Within 24 hours, local lab

Our COVID-19 Testing Approach Baseline: ▸Tufts + Broad individual PCR anterior nasal testing; Cataldo swabbing (students); ▸Ginkgo Immune Observatory PCR saliva test (staff) Screening, December 2020+: Tufts + Broad PCR, anterior nasal; Cataldo staff performing swabbing ▸2x / week for staff ▸1x / week for students Symptomatic: HHS will facilitate appointment with CHA/mobile testing Robust contact tracing essential component throughout

COVID-19 Testing – next steps ▹Recommended policy is currently before School Committee for consideration ▹COVID-19 Transmission Prevention Implementation Plan is being finalized and will be presented publicly at the School Committee meeting on November 16

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Questions? Building presentation to immediately follow