Tuesday
School districts across the country, and the greater Cortland area, resumed charging for breakfasts and lunches this month when federal aid that provided free lunches to all students during the COVID-19 pandemic expired.
Except four.
Cortland, Groton, McGraw and Marathon school districts participate in a federal program that expands free meals to all students.
Families usually have to apply for free and reduced price meals, based on financial criteria through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program.
Some school districts have opted to participate in the “Community Eligibility Provision” within the USDA program, which allows them to serve all students for free if at least 40% of the students in a particular school or district receive SNAP, Medicare or other public benefits.
"With the higher prices in grocery stores, if we can take the stress off the hands of parents, that is a big help," said Kelley Neville, food services director for Groton schools, on Sept.12.
Groton has participated in the program for about six years and provides 800 to 1,000 breakfasts and lunches daily, which feed about 80 percent of the district's students, Neville said.
Districts can participate for four years through the Community Eligibility Provision with an option for a one-year extension, Neville said.
Susan Lango, supervisor of the Marathon High School cafeteria, said the school has 342 eligible students and provides about 50 breakfasts and 200 lunches daily. She did not have figures for the elementary school.
"Today was a double cheeseburger day and it was amazing how many people came through the lines," Lango said.
Friday
Cortland County was elevated Thursday night to a medium risk of coronavirus, meaning people exposed to a COVID-19 patient should wear a mask, as well as anyone displaying symptoms, the CDC reports.
In the meantime, Broome and Tioga counties were elevated to high risk communities, and the federal government recommends everyone wear a mask in indoor public spaces.
Cortland County had 103 new cases of COVID-19 between Sept. 7 and Tuesday, giving it a rate of 216.47 cases per 100,000 people, the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports.
It had a “medium” risk, under CDC guidelines. Under metrics and guidance from the CDC — which take into account the number of new cases in a week, the number of hospitalizations and hospital capacity. The CDC suggests people with symptoms, a positive test, or exposure to someone with COVID-19 should wear a mask. People at a high risk for severe illness should consult their healthcare provider about the need for a mask or other precautions.
Saturday
After two years of fewer influenza cases – attributed to measures meant to slow the spread of COVID-19 – public health officials are not sure what the coming season will bring, except they suggest people get their flu vaccinations.
Influenza activity was unusually low for the 2020-21 season because people wore masks and practiced social distancing to slow the spread of coronavirus, said Cortland County Public Health Director Nicole Anjeski on Thursday. Last season saw an increase, but that was no surprise.
“The 2021-2022 flu season was also longer this year, flu seasons historically end sometime in May, we were still receiving labs of positive cases throughout NYS in June of 2022,” Anjeski said in an email. “Time will tell if our flu numbers will increase over the 2022-2023 flu season and if they will be worse than last season, but with any infectious disease that is the potential.”
“This will be the first winter where COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted almost completely and this will allow for increased transmission of influenza, COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses,” she said.
The national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated between 8 million and 13 million cases of flu during the 2021-22 season, killing between 5,000 and 14,000 people, according to its annual influenza disease burden report. That’s a fraction of the 38 million estimated cases of 2019-2020, which tapered off quickly as the pandemic descended on America. The number of flu cases in 2020-21 also was low as COVID restrictions and prevention measures persisted.
But most of those restrictions have been lifted this season, so the CDC recommends inactivated influenza vaccine, recombinant influenza vaccine or live attenuated influenza vaccine for anyone under 65. Older people can get different, more-potent, quadrivalent vaccines.
