Mediaboss Marketing

Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Robert Redfield denounced the Chicago Teachers Union's decision to return to virtual learning, arguing that the "safest place" for children right now is in the classroom.

The Chicago Teachers Union voted late Tuesday to return to full-time remote learning amid the surge in COVID-19 cases. Redfield told "America Reports" Wednesday that the decision has no scientific basis and only risks causing further harm to children grappling with the mental health impacts of the pandemic.

WHITE HOUSE REITERATES SUPPORT FOR OPEN SCHOOLS AFTER CHICAGO TEACHERS UNION VOTE

"Its so important to keepour schools open to face-to-facelearning. We can do it in a safe andresponsible way," Redfield emphasized. "The reality is the school isprobably the safest place forthese students to be, so I dontthink the decision really isgrounded in science. I dontthink its grounded in ourknowledge of what the situationis."

The Chicago Teachers Union's vote forced classes as early as Wednesday to be canceled. The vote was approved by 73% of the union's members, who voted for no in-class learning until cases of COVID-19 "substantially subside" or until union leaders approve an agreement for safety protocols with the district.

Redfield said the move will only exacerbate the negative effects children are experiencing, telling Fox News that there's "no question that the public healthinterest of K-12 students is notserved by remote learning."

Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention testifies at a hearing with the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services. Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020. (Anna Moneymaker/New York Times, Pool via AP)

"Whether its nutritional supportthat millions of children get orthe mental health servicesupport that over 7 million kidsget, whether its the ability todetect child abuse, the mentalhealth, depression, loneliness,suicide, drug abuse," he continued. "Not tomention ... some of these kids fall off thelearning curve, and some of them are never going to get backon the learning curve."

"This is really not in theinterest of children," Redfield reiterated. "Publichealth interest is to keep thekids in face-to-face learning.It can be done safe andresponsibly. Its actually safer thanhaving them at home in thecommunity."

Redfield later addressed the newest guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on testing and isolation that has left many confused.

On Tuesday, the top health agency reiterated that children and adults who test positive can halve their isolation time from 10 to five days if they're asymptomatic. The CDC declined to add a clear testing recommendation while saying that people can take a test if they have "access" and "want to."

PSAKI INSISTS CDC GUIDED BY SCIENCE AMID SHIFTING COVID-19 GUIDANCE

"I agree with you,its highly confusing,"Redfield said, adding that while he is in favor of reducingthe isolation time period to five days,he is "totally not in agreementwith their decision not to do atest."

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle Walensky gives her opening statement during the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions hearing. November 4, 2021. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz

"I think we really need toembrace a test they find, and ifyou are negative, you can test andreturn," he said. "If you are positive, you aregoing to need to get a testagain. I personally would not waituntil day 10, because the whole purposewas to get people back into theworkforce.You test at day five, and you arenegative, you go back to work.If you are positive, stay inisolation.Test at day seven and if youre now negative,you go back to work."

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Redfield said the updated guidance doesn't consider"knowledge of infection asfundamental to whether youreturn to work or the issue ofschools, [based on] what we call test and stay."

"Itscritical we use this testing asour guide," he said.

Here is the original post:
Former CDC Director Redfield: The safest place for children right now is in the classroom - Fox News