WASHINGTON— Today in light of the rapid spread of the COVID-19 delta variant, Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva sent a letter to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Rochelle Walensky urging the CDC to issue school-centered closure mitigation guidance to localities. The letter is a follow-up to a 2020 letter signed by numerous Members of Congress urging the CDC to issue guidance on specific mitigation strategies that should be taken in order to keep school buildings safely open for children to continue in-person learning.  

“I appreciate your response to the letter which states: ‘CDC recommends that schools should be the first to open and last to close,’” wrote Rep. Grijalva. “The response also pointed to the new extensive layered mitigation strategies that schools should take to protect students and staff. I applaud the work the CDC and this administration has done on this vital guidance. What remains missing is guidance to localities on what specific mitigation closure strategies should be taken, in what order, and when, so that we can keep school buildings safely open.”

“With COVID infection rates increasing, I am once again urging you to issue the aforementioned guidance in the event closure mitigation strategies are necessary,” continued Rep. Grijalva. “It is unacceptable to place the burden of fighting COVID-19 on our children and the educators dedicated to serving them.”

Click here to read the full letter.

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