Summer 2022 Covid Readiness

We are lucky to meet regularly with an incredible medical committee that has helped us create protocols for the summer 0f 2022: Dr. Sharyl Paley, Dr. Dipesh Navsaria, Dr. Amy Lakritz, Dr. Andy Wagner, Dr. Larry Golopol, Dr. CJ Wagner, Tera Shapiro, R.N.

We have partnerships with experts in the field: American Camp Association (ACA), Foundation for Jewish Camp (FJC), JCC Association (JCCA), Vilas County Health Department, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Our updated immunization policy requires everyone at camp be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 as defined by the CDC.  This means at least 2 doses of the Pfizer/Moderna vaccine, or 1 dose of the Janssen/Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

All campers, staff, and guests will be required to provide proof of their Covid-19 vaccines. If you have not yet uploaded your Covid-19 proof of vaccination in your forms section of your CampMinder dashboard, please do so.

To view Camp Interlaken’s general immunization policy, click here.

We strongly encourage boosters for all who are eligible. 

The CDC’s guidelines for individuals who are exposed to COVID-19 differ for those who are “up to date” (boosted) and those who are not.  If the camp participant is old enough to be eligible for a booster, we urge that they boost; it is in camp’s and in their best interest to do so.

At least 7 days prior to your arrival date, staff, campers, and their families should do their best to ensure that everybody will be COVID-free upon arrival at camp.  Here are some suggestions to help you avoid contracting Covid-19:

• Mask indoors anytime in public places like stores, restaurants, etc.
• Avoid large gatherings, and wear a mask if you must attend one.
• If you are going to restaurants, eat outside.

Optional: You may want to take a PCR test 10-12 days before camp begins, so that if the test is positive, the participant will have time to isolate before camp begins. Please contact Camp if the test is positive.

• If a participant tests positive for Covid within 10 days prior to your arrival at camp, please notify us, and we will come up with a plan for their entry into camp.
• If a participant has any cold symptoms, even with negative PCR and antigen tests, please let us know in advance so that we can monitor them more closely.
• If someone in your household tests positive within the five days prior to camp, or a participant has been identified as a “close contact” of someone who has tested positive within those five days, please call us and we can discuss the most appropriate plan of action.

Optional: You may want to take a PCR test 10-12 days before camp begins, so that if the test is positive, the participant will have time to isolate before camp begins. Please contact Camp if the test is positive.

We are requiring two tests prior to arrival at Camp: a PCR test 24-48 hours before arrival and a Rapid Antigen Test the day of arrival.

• PCR Test – No more than 72 hours before camp begins (preference of 24-48 hours), participants must complete a PCR test.  Upload the results into the Forms section of your CampInTouch Dashboard.  A NAAT Test will suffice if you cannot access a PCR.
  • Camp Interlaken will be offering a testing clinic in Milwaukee and the north Chicago suburbs again.  We will provide more information about that over the upcoming weeks.
• Rapid Antigen Test – On the morning of arrival at Camp, participants will take an antigen test at home.  Take a picture of the negative test result and show that to us upon arrival to bus stops or drop off-site.  For those traveling by plane, please text us the image of your test before you get on your plane.  We will share the phone number directly with you.
  • You can purchase any FDA approved at-home Covid-19 antigen test.  If you haven’t already received your free tests from the government, you can do so here.

If you have received a positive Covid-19 Test within 90 days prior to arrival at Camp – please upload proof of positive test via PCR or documentation from the doctor.  If positive was on an antigen test only, please get a PCR or doctor documentation as antigen will not be accepted.  If you only have a photo of your rapid antigen test, please contact Holly at Camp, and we will help.

• • For 1^st Session
    • If the positive test was between March 22^nd – April 22^nd, you will not need to PCR test prior to camp arrival, but you are required to take a Rapid Antigen test on the morning of departure.
    • *If the positive test was after April 22^nd, the participant will not have to test to come to Camp. 
  • For 2^nd Session
    • If the positive test was between April 20^th – May 20^th, you will not need to PCR test prior to camp arrival, but you are required to take a Rapid Antigen test on the morning of departure.
    • *If the positive test was after May 20^th, the participant will not have to test to come to Camp.   
  • Optional: You may want to take a PCR test 10-12 days before camp begins, so that if the test is positive, the participant will have time to isolate before camp begins. Please contact Camp if the test is positive.

• If you have received a positive Covid-19 Test within 90 days prior to arrival at Camp – please upload proof of positive test via PCR or documentation from doctor.  If positive was on an antigen test only, please get a PCR or doctor documentation.  Participant will not have to PCR test at Camp while they are within 90 days of a diagnosed infection.
• Day 0 – Upon arrival on Wednesday, each camper will be rapid tested and lice checked.
• Day 1 – On the day after arrival (Thursday), we will PCR test all of Camp.  We will receive the results at the end of the day of Day 2.
• Day 2 – We will rapid test all of Camp on Friday.
• Day 4 – We will rapid test all of Camp on Sunday.
• Day 5 – we will PCR test all of Camp again.  We will receive the results at the end of the day of Day 6.
• Staff will continue to be tested twice weekly: once with a Rapid Antigen test and once with a PCR test
• Symptomatic campers and staff will be rapid antigen tested and PCR tested as needed.
• If there is someone with a positive test in a cabin, their cabin will continue to be rapid tested for the next 5 days.
• We will use North Shore Clinical Labs for testing as we did last year.  Every person being tested must be registered in North Shore’s system.  Please use this link to register each individual person in your family before June 1^st.
  • North Shore Clinical Labs provides this service free of charge to us.  They will bill your insurance and you will not be liable for any payments beyond what your insurance will cover. At the end of the summer, you will likely receive an explanation of benefits from your insurance company showing what payments they made to North Shore Clinical Labs. You are not responsible for any unpaid amounts.
• As the climate of Covid-19 changes, we may decide to test more or less frequently; we will determine that at that time.

BUSSING – In addition to the multiple negative tests required prior to arrival, campers and staff will wear high-quality masks (well-fitting disposable surgical, KN95, KF94, or N95 masks) while riding the bus to camp.  They can remove their masks to eat or drink and then promptly put them back on.

FLIGHTS – Participants traveling by airplane are requested to wear a high-quality mask (well-fitting disposable, surgical, KN95, KF94, or N95 masks) throughout all parts of their journey to Camp.  If they eat or drink anything while in the airport, please find an area where they can do without being near others and promptly put their mask back on.  On the plane, if they can avoid eating or drinking, that would be best.  Please remove the mask as infrequently as possible and do not leave it off for more than a few minutes at a time.

PARENT DROP OFF AT CAMP – If interested, parents/guardians can elect to drop their camper(s) off at camp. A staff member will be at Camp’s gate welcoming each camper and family into Camp and directing them towards our check-in area so campers can show their rapid test results.

Please see the Family Handbook for more information; you can find this in your Hoda’ot emails.

• Following arrival at Camp Interlaken, we will enter Phase 1 of our Covid protocols.
• Our Phase 1 procedures include the following:
  • Chugim will begin as normal: camper choice and mixed age groups.
  • Masking indoors and outdoors whenever not in their cabins
  • Testing frequently with both PCR and rapid tests
  • Separating cabins with a case of covid from the rest of camp
  • Eating meals with half of camp outside and half inside
  • Running all programs outside when we can
  • Continuing our other cleaning, sanitizing, and handwashing protocols that we have in place

  During the first session, we remained in Phase 1 for the first week of the session, and we believe this helped to dramatically reduce the spread of Covid-19 in Camp.  After week 1, we moved into Phase 2.

• Our Phase 2 procedures include the following:
  • We will no longer mask outdoors
  • We will only mask indoors when we are inside a space for a prolonged period of time
  • If there is a case of Covid-19 in a cabin, that cabin will mask when interacting with others
  • Rapid test the cabin with a positive case for 5 days
  • Rapid testing of symptomatic people
  • We will continue to be outside for programming when able
  • Continuing our other cleaning, sanitizing, and handwashing protocols that we have in place
• If a participant has cold symptoms but tests negative, we may ask them to mask indoors until their symptoms subside.
• Every participant should pack 100 disposable masks: well-fitting, disposable, surgical, KN95, KF94, or N95 masks. Do not bring fabric masks or gaiters.
• Camp supports any camper or staff who would like to wear a mask at any time.

• Our goal is to manage Covid-19 at Camp and get them back into activities as soon as possible, per the CDC guidelines.  We will call you to discuss the best options for your child.
• It is strongly recommended that parents pick up their infected camper and return them to Camp after their 10-day isolation period.  
• Participants who test positive and remain at Camp will isolate with other positive participants.  Once a camper has completed 5 days of isolation, has been fever free without medication for 24 hours, and has resolving symptoms, they will be able to return to camp activities but will need to mask for another 5 days.  They will sleep and eat separately from their cabins (with staff supervision) for those 5 days and will return to the cabin on Day 11.
• Situational awareness will be used to drive real-time operational decisions.  If housing and caring for COVID-positive campers is incompatible with camp’s capacities (facilities and staff), given the period of transmissibility and isolation, we may require positive campers to be picked up by their families and returned to Camp at the end of their isolation period.

• If someone tests positive for COVID-19 at camp, our medical staff will determine who was exposed to that individual – i.e., who qualifies as a “close contact.”  At a minimum, cabinmates and staff will be considered “close contacts.”
• If a camper/staff is exposed to COVID-19, tests negative, and is up to date on COVID-19 vaccinations (i.e., the individual is eligible for a booster and is boosted) OR had a confirmed case of COVID-19 within 90 days, they can return to normal camp activities with masks required except for sleeping, showering, eating, and swimming for a minimum of 5 days post-exposure. Exposed cabins will eat meals outside under one of our tents for a minimum of 5 days.
  • A rapid antigen test will be administered daily for 5 days after exposure.
  • We will monitor exposed individuals for symptoms until 10 days after exposure.
• If a camper/staff is exposed to COVID-19, tests negative, but is not up to date on his/her COVID-19 vaccinations (i.e., the camper was eligible to boost and did not boost), they must “test to stay” (unless they had a confirmed case of COVID-19 within 90 days) to avoid having to leave Camp to quarantine for a minimum of 5 days.  They will rapid test daily throughout their 5-10 day quarantine period.

Staff will be allowed to leave camp to take restorative time off.  Staff will receive training on and emphasis on the parameters around their off-camp behavior to minimize the risk of getting Covid-19.

Their instructions include masking, social distancing, eating outside at restaurants, not attending large group gatherings, etc. We will meet with and train our staff on the expected behavior outside of Camp.

We will routinely PCR and/or rapid antigen test staff after days off with the current plan of testing them 2x/week.

We reserve the right to modify staff privileges and/or increase mitigation measures if our medical committee determines that local positivity rates or other COVID-19 conditions warrant doing so.

Visitors will be extremely limited.  When we determine that an individual visitor should be allowed and can safely be on camp property, they will be required to be masked, fully vaccinated, and they must test negative on a PCR and rapid antigen prior to their arrival as well as be symptom-free to enter camp.

Please click here to view our most current Covid-19 Playbook: 2022 CIL Protocols.

This plan is written to reflect what Camp would look like if it were to run today.  We will be regularly updating this document to reflect any changes made to policies and best practice recommendations to prevent the spread of COVID-19.  Check back frequently for our most current plans.