Following a recent audit of Ministry of Education and Research COVID-19 rapid test procurements in 2021, the Ministry of Finance has said that their findings will likely lead to the launch of a misdemeanor procedure, and subject to the procedure would be Minister of Education and Research Liina Kersna (Reform).
Advisor at the Ministry of Education and Research Mario Kadastik told ERR that following the school Christmas holidays, all children, including vaccinated ones, will need to be tested at school again. As a result of the omicron strain, more distance learning may occur too.
From Monday (November 1), rapid testing will be carried out three times a week at schools across the country. Researcher Mario Kadastik said the aim is to keep children in contact learning in the coming months.
While the close contacts of an infected person used to be determined by the Health Board, testing of children in schools now places the obligation on the latter. The Ministry of Education and Research finds that classmates of those who test positive on Monday should not be counted as such.
While children in kindergarten tend to have mild cases of the coronavirus, they can still carry the virus asymptomatically. Since the children are not tested, kindergarten managers fear there could be undetected outbreaks all over.