CMO: Daycares will reopen in September

Daycares and pre-schools will not be allowed to reopen until September.

Chief Medical Officer Dr Roshan Parasram said the reopening of such facilities would remain in line with Government's policy to open all schools.

Parasram made the remarks while responding to questions during the Ministry of Health's covid19 media briefing, during which he outlined the risks in having daycare facilities open prematurely.

He said, according to statistics, there was a general increase in the transmission of infectious diseases in the weeks following school reopenings.

"In terms of the phases, schoolchildren cannot socially distance especially smaller children. Anything having to do with school children should be aligned to the phase when we deal with the reopening of schools.

"When we look at the opening of schools, generally speaking, every year, you see a spike in the number of infectious diseases right away. Within a week or two, you see a spike in things like influenza and the common cold. We can't put all the measures in place we advocated for during the new normal. It is an extreme risk, which is why we advocate for this timeline to allow school-aged children to congregate."