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INDIANAPOLIS — A COVID-19 data expert says the best way to keep the virus out of schools this fall is for children to get vaccinated.
Dr. Brian Dixon is the director of public health informatics at the Regenstrief Institute in Indianapolis, which helps advise state health officials.
“I think what we will see in the fall is that most schools will return to normal operations, masks could still be required especially if they haven’t been vaccinated by the time school starts but I think we will see quarantining and isolation of cases and less restriction of visitors in schools,” Dixon said.
Dixon said the group seeing rising cases is children and young adults, because those age groups don’t have access to the vaccine or haven’t had access for very long.
“It’s happening to younger people which is really concerning,” Dixon said. “Those age groups that haven’t had access to the vaccine for very long. We are seeing very little activity among people who are 65 and older. Those people who have been vaccinated for a couple of months and not many of them are getting sick and ending up in the hospital.”
Pfizer’s two-dose vaccine is available to those 16 and older, and the FDA is preparing to issue emergency use authorization for the COVID-19 vaccine to be given to 12-15-year-olds.
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