KENTUCKY — Students around the Commonwealth will see some changes to their daily routine after the Kentucky Department of Education (KDE) updated the temperature check portion of the "Healthy at School" guidance.

Starting April 1, only symptomatic students and staff need to undergo temperature screenings prior to entering a school bus or building. That's a change from requiring temperature checks for all students and staff.

KDE made the change in consultation with the Kentucky Department for Public Health based on the latest information from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The updates indicate that routine temperature screenings prior to school or bus entry are not required. Students who exhibit symptoms of illness while at school should have their temperature taken as part of a physical assessment completed by school staff.

Students with a temperature greater than 100.4 degrees should follow the isolation criteria as described on Page 16 of Healthy at School. School health policies should include instructions for parents to keep students at home if they meet any of the exclusion criteria for COVID-19 listed on page 15 of Healthy at School.

The new guidance has also been updated in the "KDE COVID-19 Guidance 2.0," which presents the most up-to-date guidance for teaching, learning, and operating schools and districts during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Language was changed throughout the document to reflect new guidance related to temperature screening. Schools are no longer expected to screen students for temperatures before entering buildings or riding the school bus. Schools should continue to monitor student temperatures as part of the standard physical assessment given to students displaying symptoms of infectious disease.

Guidance from the CDC may continue to change as the pandemic evolves, and as it does, KDE said it will continue to update Kentucky’s Healthy at School guidance and other COVID-19 guidance documents.