London
United Kingdom’s chief medical officers have backed the government’s call for sending children back to school after the summer holidays, warning that missing out on their education was a much bigger risks to students than catching COVID-19.
The rare joint statement from the top health advisers to the governments of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland represents a boost for British Prime Minister Boris Johnson who has said getting children back to school is a national priority.
Confidence in the government’s approach to schooling during the coronavirus pandemic took a hit last week when education minister Gavin Williamson was forced into an embarrassing U-turn over examination results.
“Very few, if any, children or teenagers will come to long term harm from COVID-19 due solely to attending school,” they said. “This has to be set against a certainty of long-term harm to many children and young people from not attending school,” the CMOs said in a joint statement published late on Saturday.
Evidence showed that a lack of schooling increased inequalities, reduced opportunities and could exacerbate physical and mental health issues, the statement said.
By contrast there was clear evidence of a very low rate of severe disease in children, even if they caught COVID-19, and an exceptionally low risk of dying.
“The percentage of symptomatic cases requiring hospitalisation is estimated to be 0.1% for children aged 0-9 and 0.3% among those aged 10-19, compared to a hospitalisation rate of over 4% in the UK for the general population,” the statement said.
Johnson has said reopening schools in September is a social, economic and moral imperative, insisting they would be able to operate safely despite the COVID-19 pandemic.—Reuters
