Health official: 20,000 Mississippi students in quarantine

By LEAH WILLINGHAM

Associated Press/Report for America

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) – A top Mississippi health official says about 20,000 students are currently quarantined for COVID-19 exposure in the state.

That’s 4.5% of the public school population. The data comes from reports made by 800 schools to the Mississippi State Department of Health last week.

Mississippi State Epidemiologist Dr. Paul Byers on Tuesday said the school outbreaks have resulted in many school officials rethinking their policies after beginning the academic year without restrictions, like mask mandates.

Around 600 schools have now implemented universal masking for indoor settings.