Republican members on the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic are launching a new investigation into the University of Maryland over an apparent effort to reprise its pandemic-era isolation policies.
Mr. Wenstrup raised allegations that the university has begun removing students who test positive for COVID-19 from their dorms “without providing temporary housing accommodations.” He said the university now requires those who test positive to either isolate at a nearby hotel or return home.
The Republican lawmaker faulted to school for reverting to these “coercive and potentially harmful COVID-19 policies” after having requested and received $115 million in pandemic-era relief funds from the federal government under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021, and the American Rescue Plan.
While students who tested positive for COVID-19 may return to campus after the sixth day, they will have to continue to take precautions wearing a mask, avoiding areas where they can’t wear a mask, and avoiding eating at restaurants with others. Students with a dining plan are advised that they may request a sick meal to eat in their rooms.
“Presumably, it’s the students’ parents—not your university—that are footing the bill, which begs the question of how Maryland spent the federal Coronavirus dollars it received,” Mr. Wenstrup wrote.
Mr. Wenstrup called on the University of Maryland to provide details about its alleged isolation policies, including what impact the policies may have on student academic performance and what measures the university will take to assist students with their studies and mental health while in isolation. Mr. Wenstrup also asked how the university spent the $115 million in pandemic-era federal funds and whether it will financially assist any students displaced by this COVID-19 isolation policy.
“We are in receipt of the letter sent by the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic,” university spokesperson Katie Lawson told NTD News on Friday. “Throughout the pandemic, the University of Maryland has made decisions that prioritize the safety of our community and designed policies in full alignment with local and national public health guidance. During the public health emergency and today, we stay focused on the health and safety of our community.”
Ms. Lawson did not provide responses to additional questions about the university’s isolation reimbursement policies, or how it has used its pandemic-era federal relief funds.
NTD News also reached out to the subcommittee’s ranking member, Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.), for comment on the subcommittee majority’s latest investigative efforts. Mr. Ruiz’s office did not respond by the time this article was published.
