Dr. Fauci Says Sending College Students With COVID-19 Home Is ‘The Worst Thing You Can Do’

Written by @kristenshylin_

Colleges and universities across the U.S. opened campus doors to students for the fall semester after shutting down in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.

As expected, higher-education institutions have endured numerous virus outbreaks within weeks of opening despite safety guidelines and precautions.

While the novel virus continues to sweep college communities, campus officials are considering sending students home and closing down. Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Dr. Anthony Fauci, disagrees.

According to Newsweek, Fauci says sending students home is the worst thing you can do.

One thing an institute does not want to implement after identifying a case is a protocol to send students home, Fauci told Today’s, Sheinelle Jones.

“Keep them at the university in a place that’s sequestered enough from the other students,” he continued.

Although sending students with COVID-19 home may seem like the plausible thing to do, Fauci said students could potentially spread the virus in their home state.

Due to the rising number of cases at North Carolina State University, students were ordered to make preparations to move out because they were “untenable.” Students who had nowhere to go could apply for a waiver, but N.C. State’s primary goal was to decrease the number of students living on campus.

According to The New York Times, there at least 26,000 new coronavirus cases on college campuses, with more than 500 cases at James Madison University.