Returning US school children face battery of coronavirus tests

The two largest school districts in the United States are rolling out ambitious and costly plans to test students and staff for the novel coronavirus, bidding to help keep school buildings open amid a rise in infections among the nation’s school-age children. New York City is set to begin testing 10-20 percent of students and staff in every building once a month starting Thursday, the same day the final wave of the district’s more than one million students began returning to brick-and-mortar classrooms for the first time in six months. “Every single school will have testing. It will be done every single month. It will be rigorous,” New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said in announcing the plan as part of an agreement with the teachers union to avert a strike. At least 79 Department of Education employees have died from the virus. With an estimated 100,000-120,000 tests expected every month, each costing between $78 and $90, New York City’s school-based testing plan goes well beyond safety protocols seen in most other districts. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Unified School District has launched a similarly comprehensive, $150m testing programme to help determine when it will be safe to resume in-person instruction. The district began the school year remotely in August for all 600,000 students. style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0; bottom: 0; right: 0; left: 0;">