I hope everyone has two weeks of vacation available or that you’re eligible for FMLA leave since the US Education department just released school closure guidelines.

The government issued new guidance for schools with confirmed cases, saying they should close for at least 14 days because children can be contagious for seven to 10 days from when they get sick. That means parents can expect to have children at home for longer than previously thought.

The Education Department said that more than 430 schools had closed, affecting about 245,000 children in 18 states. That was about 100 more schools reported closed than reported on Thursday.

Two weeks? What are you going to do for your child if their school is closed for two weeks? My daughter goes to an excellent after school care/vacation program, but if there are cases in the community, I’d bet that could close too. Her backup care – my parents – would be out of the question since my Mom is a breast cancer survivor and gets sick easily as it is.

I learned yesterday that at least in my community, there is already one suspected case of swine flu – not to mention multiple confirmed cases at one local university.

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