From Dr Scott Atlas, Physician and Sr Fellow at Stanford
https://thehill.com/opinion/education/500349-science-says-open-the-schools
With some quotes:
"The irony in such language is that children are safe at school already. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that of the first 68,998 U.S. deaths from COVID-19, only 12 have been in children under age 14 - less than 0.02 percent. Nor is coronavirus killing teenagers. At last count, the fatality total among children under 18 without an underlying condition is one; only ten of the 16,469 confirmed coronavirus deaths in New York City were among those under the age of 18. That's similar to the fatality rate for those under 20 in France, estimated at 0.001 percent, and in Spain.
The death of even one child is tragic, of course. Yet, it must be kept in mind that as many as 600 children in the United States died from seasonal influenza in 2017-18, according to CDC estimates, while the CDC's estimate for COVID-19 fatalities number just 12. A just-released JAMA Pediatrics study flatly states: "Our data indicate that children are at far greater risk of critical illness from influenza than from COVID-19." If the COVID-19 hazard sets the new standard for health safety, the country will need to close its schools each year from November until April to guard against influenza."
"But what about the adults - the teachers, guidance counsellors, bus drivers and kitchen staff? No one wants to endanger the health of educators but, fortunately, risks to adults in schools are much less than those encountered in grocery stores, pharmacies and other essential businesses. As is shown across the world, including Switzerland, Canada, the Netherlands, France, Iceland, the UK, Australia and now Ireland, children seldom if ever transmit the disease to adults, even to their parents. Several epidemiologists recently denounced the widely cited April publication that erroneously concluded that children can transmit COVID-19 just as readily as adults. Its author, German virologist Christian Drosten, previously had been featured as a COVID-19 hero, abetting the panic to close schools.
No less important, COVID-19 mainly targets the elderly and those with underlying conditions. For people under 60, COVID-19 fatality rates are so low that they are less than or equal to those associated with the seasonal flu, according to data from France, Spain and the Netherlands, as well as the CDC. Certainly, adults at high risk or who are fearful should take precautions, and by now they understand how to social-distance for their own protection. But teaching is a young person's occupation. Teachers' median age is 41; more than 80 percent are under the age of 55, the age at which most become eligible for a retirement pension."
https://thehill.com/opinion/education/500349-science-says-open-the-schools
With some quotes:
"The irony in such language is that children are safe at school already. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that of the first 68,998 U.S. deaths from COVID-19, only 12 have been in children under age 14 - less than 0.02 percent. Nor is coronavirus killing teenagers. At last count, the fatality total among children under 18 without an underlying condition is one; only ten of the 16,469 confirmed coronavirus deaths in New York City were among those under the age of 18. That's similar to the fatality rate for those under 20 in France, estimated at 0.001 percent, and in Spain.
The death of even one child is tragic, of course. Yet, it must be kept in mind that as many as 600 children in the United States died from seasonal influenza in 2017-18, according to CDC estimates, while the CDC's estimate for COVID-19 fatalities number just 12. A just-released JAMA Pediatrics study flatly states: "Our data indicate that children are at far greater risk of critical illness from influenza than from COVID-19." If the COVID-19 hazard sets the new standard for health safety, the country will need to close its schools each year from November until April to guard against influenza."
"But what about the adults - the teachers, guidance counsellors, bus drivers and kitchen staff? No one wants to endanger the health of educators but, fortunately, risks to adults in schools are much less than those encountered in grocery stores, pharmacies and other essential businesses. As is shown across the world, including Switzerland, Canada, the Netherlands, France, Iceland, the UK, Australia and now Ireland, children seldom if ever transmit the disease to adults, even to their parents. Several epidemiologists recently denounced the widely cited April publication that erroneously concluded that children can transmit COVID-19 just as readily as adults. Its author, German virologist Christian Drosten, previously had been featured as a COVID-19 hero, abetting the panic to close schools.
No less important, COVID-19 mainly targets the elderly and those with underlying conditions. For people under 60, COVID-19 fatality rates are so low that they are less than or equal to those associated with the seasonal flu, according to data from France, Spain and the Netherlands, as well as the CDC. Certainly, adults at high risk or who are fearful should take precautions, and by now they understand how to social-distance for their own protection. But teaching is a young person's occupation. Teachers' median age is 41; more than 80 percent are under the age of 55, the age at which most become eligible for a retirement pension."
