WASHINGTON — The government is urging school officials to stay calm when swine flu strikes this fall, closing buildings only in drastic cases and allowing sick students to return as soon as 24 hours after their fever is gone.
States and schools should also plan now for the possibility of schoolwide vaccinations beginning in mid-October.
Federal officials know more now about swine flu than they did last spring, when alarm and confusion led hundreds of schools to temporarily shut down. New guidance issued Friday reflects what the officials have learned.
Closing schools is rarely warranted, even if students or teachers have swine flu, said Thomas Frieden, director of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“There are measures we can take to protect the students, to protect the staff and allow learning to continue,” Frieden said during a news conference.
Some steps for prevention remain the same: People should wash their hands, cough into their sleeves and stay home if they get sick.
