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* Gov. JB Pritzker was asked today about outbreaks at schools…
Remember, an outbreak is one in which there are five or more kids or people at that school who have tested positive.
And then he insisted the criteria was “five or more” again after being pressed.
* Tribune…
The criteria for an outbreak was previously five or more cases but recently changed, said IDPH spokeswoman Melaney Arnold.
“Outbreaks at schools are two or more cases epidemiologically linked — people were in the same space at the same time,” Arnold said in a statement.
And if you go to the IDPH website, you’ll see that, of 26 outbreaks, 20 are classified as less than five cases.
…Adding… With thanks to a commenter, this is from the CDC…
Definitions for COVID-19 outbreaks are relative to the local context. A working definition of “outbreak” is recommended for planning investigations. A recommended definition is a situation that is consistent with either of two sets of criteria:
• During (and because of) a case investigation and contact tracing, two or more contacts are identified as having active COVID-19, regardless of their assigned priority.
OR
• Two or more patients with COVID-19 are discovered to be linked, and the linkage is established outside of a case investigation and contact tracing (e.g., two patients who received a diagnosis of COVID-19 are found to work in the same office, and only one or neither of the them was listed as a contact to the other).
posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 11:06 am
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I guess he is listening to the experts again…
Comment by Citizen Kane Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 11:09 am
I don’t think I would consider 2 cases an outbreak.
Comment by Demoralized Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 11:11 am
Well, I looked on the CDC website for information out outbreak definitions and sure enough, they define a COVID outbreak as 2 or more.
Comment by Demoralized Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 11:17 am
===I don’t think I would consider 2 cases an outbreak. ===
Two linked cases in a setting where dozens of children interact in the same room in a building that houses hundreds or thousands that travel through the same hallways and utilize the same shared spaces like bathrooms or the cafeteria?
Given the setting I think it is worth re-evaluating and creating criteria for schools that are reflective the risks involved.
I don’t really think this is a big enough detail to get hung up on, but the slip up is unfortunate for folks that might be excited to make this a big deal.
But at least we’ve got Tom Devore out there forcing schools to close down to keep kids safe.
Comment by Candy Dogood Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 11:19 am
Perhaps CDC and IDPH should reconsider their definition of an “outbreak”. Fits the agenda I suppose…
Comment by Magic Dragon Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 11:22 am
Hey Magic, what’s your medical specialty?
Comment by Cheryl44 Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 11:37 am
The number of outbreaks is probably under reported. I base that on anecdotal evidence so it is not supported by hard data. Schools are having to do their own contact tracing, at least in rural Illinois because these small health departments are grossly understaffed (probably a feature and not a bug)and cannot do it. we are not trained on how to do this stuff, so we are probably missing a lot. speaking only for our district, I am sure we are or have.
=Hey Magic, what’s your medical specialty?=
mic drop.
Comment by JS Mill Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 11:48 am
=== Hey Magic, what’s your medical specialty?===
Phrenology?
Comment by 47th Ward Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 11:53 am
I only found one school listed on the link, which is where my daughter attends. I was upset yesterday to find out she and four other high schoolers all rode in teachers vehicle to an FFA meeting an hour away unmasked…I know of several other local schools who have sent close to 30 kids home to quarantine this week alone.
Comment by Shelby2021 Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 11:59 am
People are too focused on the fact that 2 is a small number. Here, I understand it as an indicator that there is a risk that there is or will be much greater spread and mitigation measures must be put in place. I admit I could be wrong; only did a bit of quick googling and am not an epidemiologist.
Comment by Leslie K Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 12:00 pm
Too many cooks in this kitchen has resulted in a house fire. People should focus on doing what is needed to protect the public health (vaccines and masks) and not trying to nitpick every little thing that’s said.
Comment by Norseman Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 12:35 pm
Highland High school in Madison county I s not listed but tonight’s underclass football game was cancelled due to an outbreak.
Comment by Retired and still in Illinois Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 12:37 pm
Well, given the R0 for delta is, I believe, 6 or 7 maybe we ought to consider an N=2 to be a potentially serious start to an outbreak.
But hey.. why start applying science or logic now? /s
Comment by This is ridiculous Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 12:41 pm
=Highland High school in Madison county I s not listed but tonight’s underclass football game was cancelled due to an outbreak.=
That may be a designation made by the school but not official. Could be due to a large number for students with COVID but does not meet the official outbreak designation.
Comment by JS Mill Thursday, Sep 2, 21 @ 12:47 pm