Miami School Tells Parents to Keep Vaccinated Kids at Home

Earlier this year, Centner Academy in Miami said that it would not allow teachers vaccinated against COVID-19 in its classrooms, citing the “vaccine-shedding” myth as the main reason. Now, the private institution — whose classrooms currently range from preschool to middle school — is telling parents of vaccinated students to keep their children at home.

Centner students who received a COVID vaccine now must adhere to a “mandatory quarantine period” of “30 days after each dose,” Newsweek reported.

A letter sent to parents also urged them to “hold off until summer” on any plans to have their children get a shot, Newsweek added, citing local outlet WSVN.

“Because of the potential impact on other students and our school community, vaccinated students will need to stay at home for 30 days post-vaccination for each dose and booster they receive and may return to school after 30 days as long as the student is healthy and symptom-free,” the letter stated, according to WSVN.

The letter appeared to allude to prior misinformation the school cited, even though COVID-19 vaccines have been shown to be safe and effective. WSVN reported that Centner Academy’s reason for issuing the letter was to — in the school’s words — allow “time for the potential transmission or shedding onto others to decrease.”

“What happens 30 days after they get vaccinated?” Aileen Marty, MD, an infectious disease expert at Florida International University in Miami, said to WSVN. “What kind of nonsense is this? Where did they get that? There’s nothing in the recommendations to that … they made that up. That’s science fiction, not even science fiction, because it’s pure fiction.”

The “vaccine-shedding” myth involves the belief that vaccinated people can shed the spike protein, causing menstrual cycle irregularities, miscarriages, and sterility in other women in close proximity. However, experts have repeatedly denied these claims.

Centner Academy did not immediately provide a copy of the letter detailing the mandate to MedPage Today. The school also did not respond to a request for comment on why it’s requiring students vaccinated against COVID-19 to stay at home for 30 days.