Pa. Health Secretary Levine urges college students to protect themselves from covid

Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine called on college students to follow the coronavirus safety guidelines recommended by their institutions and by health care professionals.

The bulk of Levine’s message Monday was directed at people between the ages of 19 to 24, many of whom are college students, where the state has recorded a 19% increase in recent cases compared to the numbers from that age group in April during the early stages of the pandemic.

“Why the big jump in cases? Colleges and universities are back in session,” Levine said.

The students are “uniquely in a position to help change the course of the spread of this virus,” Levine said.

What happens on campus has a direct impact on what happens off campus and, if the virus spreads among students, it will invariably spread to other places in the community, Levine said.

“We are all interconnected and interdependent on each other in every way,” Levine said.

While she offered to advise college officials, decisions about how these institutions respond to outbreaks are left to them, Levine said.

She urged against colleges sending students home because that could spread the virus further as students come from all parts of the state and country, she said.

Washington & Jefferson College has sent 26 students home since Aug. 24 for violating coronavirus-related guidelines. At the University of Pittsburgh, there are 93 active student covid-19 cases and there have been 163 students test positive since Aug. 1, according to its online dashboard.

RELATED: Covid-19 data from Western Pa. colleges

North Central Pennsylvania, home of Penn State University’s main campus and several other institutions, has recorded the biggest jump in cases among 19-24-year-olds, where in April they accounted for 7% of cases. In September, they accounted for 69% of cases, according to Levine.

North Eastern Pennsylvania saw a similar spike, with 6% of cases in April being from 19-24-year-olds to 40% in September, she said.

In addition to wearing masks and social distancing, Levine asked college students who test positive to quarantine, even if they don’t have symptoms, and for those who may have been exposed to a positive student to also quarantine for 14 days.

“Stay calm. Stay alert. Stay safe,” Levine said.