Newton Schools To Get Rapid Coronavirus Tests From State

NEWTON, MA — Rapid coronavirus testing supplies will be distributed to 134 Massachusetts school districts, and Newton was one of the districts selected for the program, state education officials announced this week.

The supplies are expected to be sent to school districts, charters and special education collaboratives by early December.

The pilot testing is only for those who are symptomatic at school. Because it is a rapid test, it requires a follow-up swab test whether the rapid test is negative or positive.

"This is not the surveillance testing for asymptomatic individuals that many have been pushing for in the community. It is one more tool in the toolbox," said Julie McDonough of Newton Public Schools.

The antigen tests are supposed to help schools identify infected individuals and their close contacts more quickly to help stop the spread, but, like many districts, Newton asks students to stay home if they're not feeling well.

"The major issue is nobody wants any symptomatic person coming to school," said Pheobe Olhava a physician and mother of two in Newton Public Schools.

She said hopefully the district can work out a contactless system where schools can do something similar to the drive-thru test sites to test those who need it.

"The program will do us a disservice if it inadvertently encourages symptomatic people to come to school, " said Deborah Youngblood, Newton commissioner of Health and Human Services

Related: Newton Coronavirus Case Count Rises Again

Olhava is part of a group of parents "Safer Teachers, Safer Students" pushing Newton Public Schools to follow the lead of neighboring communities like Wellesley and perform random coronavirus tests on students and faculty to help prevent a potential "silent" outbreak and build confidence in a return to school.

"I think the program is excellent in terms of improving access to testing," she said, noting there are few options in Newton, aside from your own doctor's office to actually get testing.

"Any testing if you have symptoms can allow for immediate isolation and keeping others safe from you," she said.

But her group has been advocating for asymptomatic screening for students.

"There's a big distinction there," she said.

Jeffrey Riley, the commissioner of the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, said qualifying schools had to meet several requirements, including offering some in-person learning, having the ability to report test results to the Department of Public Health and training for staff administering the rapid tests.

"By testing students and teachers and getting results within minutes, we will be able to identify infected individuals and their close contacts more quickly and to help stop any spread," Riley said in a news conference Wednesday.

The voluntary program provided test kits to schools at no cost to the districts. Riley said the program uses the Abbott BinaxNOW rapid testing system, which was distributed to Massachusetts and other states under a contract with the federal government. Although Massachusetts has chosen to test only those who are symptomatic, in Texas schools are also testing asymptomatic students.

The rapid tests deliver results in about 15 minutes, but Riley said they can be less reliable than a traditional COVID-19 tests that gets sent to a lab. Because of that, he said, the tests will only be used on students and staff who are already showing COVID-19 symptoms. A parent or guardian will also have to give consent for their child to take the test.

"Under federal guidelines, at this time, the Abbott BinaxNOW test is not to be used for broad-scale asymptomatic (testing) in schools and students, parents and staff should be aware that an antigen test result are not considered at this time diagnostic," Riley said. "Results are probable and confirmation of a person's COVID-19 status requires a PCR test."

A number of people have wondered just how many students will actually benefit from the testing.

"We'll see how useful it is once it is up and running," McDonough said.

RELATED: Newton Parents Ask For Coronavirus Testing At Schools - Patch

Jenna Fisher is a news reporter for Patch. Got a tip? She can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna). Have a something you'd like posted on the Patch? Here's how.