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In just a matter of weeks, tens of millions of children will start a new school year, and what that will look like has become the nation’s thorniest political and epidemiological issue. School officials have to figure out how to resume schooling while limiting the risks to children, their teachers, school staffers and their communities. This pivotal moment in the coronavirus pandemic comes as scientists are still trying to understand precisely how the virus affects children and how children affect the spread of the virus. (Achenbach, Meckler and Janes, 7/9)

As the White House, the nation’s pediatricians and many worn-down, economically strapped parents push for school doors to swing open this fall, local education officials say they are being crushed by the costs of getting students and teachers back in classrooms safely. (Goldstein, 7/9)

Gov. Ron DeSantis, in his push to reopen classrooms this fall, said Thursday that if retailers are allowed to operate, schools should be, too. The risk of children getting sick is “extremely, extremely low,” DeSantis said, and if fast food eateries and hardware stores could operate as “essential” businesses during the coronavirus pandemic, then schools should reopen as well. (Fineout, 7/9)

Sacramento City Unified School District released a draft of the precautions and recommendations for the fall as they plan to reopen schools. The 44-page draft laid out precautions students and staff must take, which include daily student monitoring for symptoms and temperature screenings on campus. (Morrar, 7/9)

Leaders of the Los Angeles teachers union on Friday will call for campuses to remain closed and for distance learning to continue when the school year begins on Aug. 18, The Times has learned. Union leaders have concluded it is not safe to bring children back on campus as COVID-19 cases in Los Angeles County surge to new highs. (Agrawal and Blume, 7/9)

Kaiser Health News: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: ‘Open The Schools, Close The Bars’ 
How to safely open the nation’s schools this fall has become the latest spat in attempting to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence have decried the guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as too complicated and expensive and ordered a new set. Meanwhile, tests for the virus remain difficult to get, particularly in states experiencing spikes, and getting results to patients is taking increasingly longer, making contact tracing effectively impossible. (7/9)

Also —

Everyone agrees it’s not healthy to keep kids stuck at home, with the American Academy of Pediatrics encouraging school districts to resume in-person class time for the health of the nation's children. But when it comes to the virus and its potential to spread quickly, it’s less clear what will happen when they return. (Flaherty, 7/9)