Broome County Health Department delivers air filters to schools and daycare centers

BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — The Broome County Health Department (BCHD) recently purchased and delivered more than 1,300 stand-alone air filters to Broome County schools and licensed daycare centers for use in classrooms.

BCHD purchased the filters using New York State Department of Health, Health Research Inc. grant funds provided during the COVID response to help reduce exposure to airborne viruses.

“The best place for our kids to learn is right in the classroom,” Broome County Executive Jason Garnar said in a press release. “These air filters will help limit exposure to viruses that tend to spread in schools during cold-weather months, keeping students healthier. Thank you to the Broome County Health Department and our local schools for partnering on this effort.”

The medical-grade, high-efficiency particular air (HEPA) filters are stand-alone units that can be placed in classrooms with students and staff to help remove airborne contaminants including viruses such as COVID-19, RSV, the flu, and the common cold.

The filters are also helpful during other air-quality events, such as the smoke from the Canadian wildfires earlier this year, by decreasing the particles from the infiltrating smoke.

Broome County Health Department’s Emergency Preparedness Coordinator Michael Bender coordinated the effort with schools and daycares. “This exercise provided another opportunity to anticipate and respond to the community’s health needs,” he said. “We know that preventing illness is much better than responding to an illness.”