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Mouth and nose protection in the classroom: Stricter quarantine rules apply again to the highly contagious omicron variant
Photo: Michael Weber IMAGEPOWER / imago images / Michael Weber
If a schoolgirl is infected with the Omikron variant of the Sars-CoV-2 virus, the quarantine of a classmate who is only remotely sitting in the classroom is still justified. This was decided by the Koblenz Administrative Court in a decision announced on Wednesday from the previous day (Az .: 3 L 1 / 22.KO). This also applies if the classmate wore an FFP2 mask and the PCR test carried out a week later was negative.
An eighth grader failed with her urgent application to prematurely lift the two-week corona quarantine imposed by the city of Koblenz's public order office. The student should therefore be in domestic isolation until January 5, 2022 because a schoolmate was infected with the particularly contagious Omicron variant of the Sars-CoV-2 virus. On the penultimate day of school before the start of the Christmas holidays, the classmate and the applicant had taken part in the joint religion class.
Reference to several contagion risks
The high school student considered her ordered quarantine to be disproportionate. She didn't sit near the infected student in the classroom. In addition, she always wore an FFP2 mask. A PCR test carried out on December 29, 2021 found no corona infection in her.
But the quarantine order was proportionate and lawful, the administrative court ruled.
The risk of infection in school rooms is not determined solely by wearing mouth and nose protection and regular ventilation.
The symptoms of the infected person, the type and volume of speaking in class and the occupancy rate also played a role.
When entering and leaving the classroom and during breaks, there could also be additional risks of infection.
Even if a student did not sit near the infected classmate, there is still an increased risk of infection.
The negative result of the PCR test does not change anything.
Because the test was carried out only one week after the last contact with the infected person.
The incubation period, i.e. the time between infection and the appearance of the first symptoms, is up to 14 days.
This period did not expire until January 5, 2022 and thus the end of the quarantine.
In the past, health authorities had often only ordered quarantine for those sitting next to an infected person if the students in the classroom had worn masks.
sun / jur