WASHINGTON — An audit recently found that D.C. Public Schools did not meet CDC or D.C. Health guidelines for schools doing asymptomatic testing when students returned in Spring of 2021, according to a report released to WUSA9 from the D.C. Auditor (ODCA).
According to the CDC and D.C. Health guidelines, a random sample of 10% of students should be screened. However, the auditor found only about 4% of DCPS students attending in-person last spring were screened.
The ODCA 83-page report was not to meant to audit the performance of D.C. Health and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, but rather to "provide confidence in the data collected” by analyzing the collection and reporting processes, said the agency.
The ODCA’s review was from March 2020 through April 5, 2021.
On March 10, 2021, DCPS Chancellor Lewis Ferebee testified to the D.C. Council that out of approximately 10,000 students enrolled in in-person learning only 3,851 students had consent forms on file for asymptomatic testing. This information is not made public online, according to the report.
The ODCA said it “encourages DC Health to consider reporting on more testing data for DCPS, public charter and private schools including the number of in-person students, percentage of those students who have consent forms for testing, number of students and staff tested weekly, and number of positive cases identified weekly among students and staff."
As experts became concerned about the lack of standardized COVID-19 data, The Delaware State Auditor spearheaded a multistate task force in July 2020 to create a framework in which states could collect and audit their COVID-19 data.
The Office of the D.C. Auditor joined a national effort by first releasing a special report on Nov. 23, 2020, that found D.C. Health “demonstrated significant improvements in data reporting through the spring and fall of 2020."
The auditor also found that while D.C. Health improved its data reporting on schools, it still does not report schools that have five or fewer cases of COVID-19, even though DCPS is publicly reporting them on its own separate website, “Reopen Strong.” The report also found D.C. Health is not reporting cases in child care centers on its page.
“This lack of a one-stop-shop for data on cases in child care centers is not in line with practices of our neighboring jurisdictions,” said ODCA in its report.
The audit also measured data collection, monitoring and reporting in 59 areas, and showed D.C. successfully addressed 53 out of 59. And, 43 of the questions included information that should be public.
However, D.C. was only publicly reporting 32 of the 43 including antigen and antibody test results, test administration or test result accuracy, the number of/the rate of uninsured for patients who died of COVID-19, according to ODCA's report.
The District made progress since ODCA’s Nov. best practices report by providing mask-wearing prevalence, exposure activity data and assisted living facility data. However, the auditor found D.C. is not reporting new cases or death counts in congregate “residential facilities” like nursing homes, homeless shelters, jails, halfway homes or group homes.
The D.C. Auditor also found D.C. Health failed to address one of its major recommendations: reporting daily death count.
"Along with new cases, the number of new deaths is one of the most basic indicators in a pandemic,” said ODCA about the daily death count reporting issue.
D.C. Health only reports cumulative death on the data pages of its website, not the number of deaths per day as recommended. Daily death counts are only reported in news released for each day on the newsroom page of the website.
“New deaths should be reported in a clear visualization that allows the user to grasp trends in COVID-19 mortality,” according to the report.
The report also indicated while the data is available, it has not been made public because, “officials with both OCME and D.C. Health said they did not believe it was their responsibility."
"This has led to missed opportunities in communicating with the public,” said the D.C. Auditor's office.
DCPS released a statement the night after the report was released:
“DCPS looks forward to welcoming students back to a safe, joyful and rigorous classroom environment beginning August 30.
“This week, DCPS will share with our families the testing consent form provided by OSSE and actively engage with families to explain the importance of asymptomatic testing for keeping our students safe. Forms will be available online and at in-person school events and will also be sent home with students during the first week of classes.
“Additionally, we continue to encourage all eligible students and community members to get the COVID-19 vaccine at school clinics and sites through the city.”