The state of California delivered 56,700 COVID-19 test kits to the Santa Barbara County Education Office (SBCEO) on Jan. 10, and the education office completed its distribution to school districts so families can test their students at home, Internal Services Administrator Debbie Breck said.
“It’s really helpful to have the kits available to send home, [and] it’s very helpful to have parents test their kids before they leave [for school]. Each kit only includes two tests, so they will need a lot more moving forward,” Breck said.
The tests are iHealth COVID-19 Antigen Rapid tests that can be administered via nasal swab with test results in 15 minutes. The state ordered 6 million at-home test kits in December, but the demand for testing and their shortage created delivery slowdowns, Breck said.
Orcutt Union School District Superintendent Holly Edds said the tests came at the perfect time, right as its 5,082-student population returned after winter break.
“We all know COVID testing lines have been really long, and the easier we make it for parents to test their children, the more likely they will be going to school safely. We are excited for what this means for keeping students in the classroom while not exposing them to positive cases,” Edds said.
Edds and Orcutt Union staff created multiple drive-through distributions for families to come and pick up their test kit, she said.
“It’s the most quick and efficient way in our district to distribute them. We also felt it was important to give the tests to parents; they needed to be given to parents as opposed to sending them home,” Edds said.
Orcutt Union had 110 confirmed cases at its 11 school sites as of Jan. 12, according to district dashboard data. Once a student or staff member tests positive, they’re required to quarantine for 10 days and return on day 11 if they are fever-free for 24 hours, or return to school on day six with a negative test and symptoms have improved, the Orcutt Union COVID-19 policy stated.
If a vaccinated student had close contact and has no symptoms, the student may return while wearing a mask, and must get tested five to seven days from the close contact, the policy continued.
Test kits on hand provide another layer to inform parents and faculty and keep students in school, Edds said.
“It’s become more challenging since we came back from break with [more] staff and students with positive test results. It’s harder to contact-trace,” she said.
COVID-19 cases across Santa Barbara County continue to climb, with 1,141 new cases, 98 new hospitalizations, 14 in the ICU, and four new deaths, according to county public health department data from Jan. 7 to 13. There were 7,184 active cases and an 18 percent positivity rate.
Although the test kits provide a security measure for students, teachers aren’t allowed to take the test kits. Edds said the district is working closely with the Public Health Department and other organizations to offer vaccination clinics and to open testing sites for teachers since the test kit delivery is just for students.
“We are getting through this together. We continue to have these challenges, and it’s definitely more of a marathon than a sprint. We appreciate the collaboration and support for the best interest of our students,” she said.
Anyone still searching for COVID-19 tests can get one set of four COVID-19 antigen tests per household from the United States Postal Service, which will begin shipping them in late January. To order, visit special.usps.com/testkits.
This article appears in Jan 20-27, 2022.