Parent knowingly sent child with COVID to school, exposing 80, Nevada officials say

A child knowingly sent to a Nevada middle school while sick with COVID-19 exposed at least 80 others to the virus, health officials say.

The child attended the first day of class at Marce Herz Middle School in Reno despite testing positive for COVID-19 two days earlier, the Reno Gazette-Journal reported.

“The parent, who also tested positive for COVID-19, also refused to communicate with the school,” Washoe County Health District officials said in a statement.

The Washoe County School District’s outbreak response plan requires anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 to remain home at least 10 days from the onset of symptoms and 24 hours after recovering.

The incident may have exposed more than 80 people at the campus to the coronavirus, KOLO reported. It’s unclear how many were required to stay home after being exposed.

“We are asking everyone, especially parents with children in Washoe County schools, to please cooperate with disease investigators regarding positive COVID-19 cases,” the health district said.

But health officials do not plan to bring charges against the parent at this time, the release said. “We are seeking cooperation from our community members,” they said.

More than 369,000 people have tested positive for COVID-19 and 6,120 people have died since the start of the pandemic in Nevada, according to the state.

This story was originally published August 12, 2021 at 3:43 PM with the headline "Parent knowingly sent child with COVID to school, exposing 80, Nevada officials say."