During a meeting of the House Education Committee yesterday on the Covid-19 pandemic at schools, the Health and Education Ministers were asked to reply to questions on whether there are chains of Covid-19 cases at schools and whether confirmed cases have increased.
Health Minister Michael Hadjipantelas refuted claims about uncontrolled situation with increased Covid-19 cases at schools, noting that currently in schools there is the lowest positivity rate (1.13%) recorded in the community, also referring to reduced cases compared to the rest of the society.
The Minister provided the following data to the Committee for the period 5 – 16 February:
- In total there were 28,462 cases
- Some 7,933 (28%) were students from 6 to 17 years of age
- From these cases there were 18,382 contacts
- Approximately 6,320 students chose the “test to stay” measure
- From the “test today” measure there was an average of 72 positive cases per day
- The positivity rate at schools is 1.13%
The Health Minister also defended the “test to stay” measure which, as known had caused many reactions by parents and teachers.
