Quarantine Elimination for K-12 Students With Mask-on-Mask Exposure to SARS-CoV-2.

Objectives: With layered mitigation strategies, there are low rates of secondary transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; therefore, quarantine after close-contact exposure to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in the kindergarten through 12th grade (K-12) setting further disrupts in-person learning with uncertain benefit. We explored the impact of eliminating quarantine for students with mask-on-mask exposures to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on associated secondary transmission in schools.

Methods: This observational study was conducted in a large K-12 public school district in Omaha, Nebraska (August 1, 2020, to March 15, 2021).