'I’ve Been Bitten, I’ve Been Scratched by Kids': Teachers on the Lack of Monkeypox Guidelines

A daily mix of stories about cities, city life, and our always evolving neighborhoods and skylines. [Curbed]( FRIDAY, AUGUST 19 PUBLIC HEALTH [‘I’ve Been Bitten, I’ve Been Scratched by Kids’]( New York teachers worry about the lack of monkeypox guidance, especially in classrooms full of handsy students. Photo-Illustration: Curbed; Photos: Getty With weeks to go until kids return to New York City schools, Sarah Allen, a second-grade teacher at a public school in Brooklyn, is anxious that she hasn’t yet heard from city officials about a plan to contain monkeypox if it hits classrooms. “It seems in a school system like New York’s it’s unavoidable that there will be at least some cases coming in,” she said. The city is an epicenter of the virus: As of August 17, just under one-fifth of the nation’s 13,500 confirmed monkeypox cases have been in New York. While the vast majority have been found in men who have sex with men, the virus can [spread to anyone]( through close, often skin-to-skin, contact or by touching surfaces that have been used by someone with the virus. Allen, who has been a teacher for 20 years, said that worries her. “Especially with day care but also elementary school, there’s tons of physical contact,” she said. Since the outbreak began, fewer than a dozen children have tested positive for monkeypox in the United States. Earlier this month, a day-care worker in Illinois with monkeypox may have [exposed as many as 50 people]( to the disease, many of them children, officials said. Those children were offered the Jynneos monkeypox vaccine, which is in short supply. [Continue reading »]( Want more on city life, real estate, and design? [Subscribe now]( for unlimited access to Curbed and everything New York. [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( The Latest [Should It Be Easier to Take Away a Driver’s License? It’s not a right, but we often treat it like one.]( By Alissa Walker [When Is a Property Not a Home? Dr. Oz Knows. Maybe when it’s in New Jersey.]( By Alissa Walker [Morningside Heights Gets That Much Higher Two seminary campuses monetize their air.]( By Justin Davidson [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( [Read More From Curbed]( Introducing Dinner Party, a lively new evening newsletter about everything that just happened. [Sign up]( to get it every weeknight. [GET THE NEWSLETTER]( [logo]( [facebook logo]( [instagram logo]( [twitter logo]( [unsubscribe](param=curbed) | [privacy notice]( | [update preferences]( This email was sent to {EMAIL}. Was this email forwarded to you? [Sign up now]( to get this newsletter in your inbox. [View this email in your browser.]( You received this email because you have a subscription to New York. Reach the right online audience with us For advertising information on email newsletters, please contact AdOps@nymag.com Vox Media, LLC 1201 Connecticut Ave. NW, 12th Floor Washington, DC 20036 Copyright © 2022, All rights reserved