A senior HSE official says a risk-benefit analysis of schoolchildren being 'close contacts' will have to be examined.
Thousands of schoolchildren are out of school this week as they were deemed to be close contacts of someone with Covid.
28 thousand children between the ages of 0 and 14 have presented for PCR tests in the past week.
Chief Clinical Officer with the HSE, Dr Colm Henry, says the close contact policy may change for children.
"Certainly I think there's emerging evidence, when you look at risks and counter risks of the risks of large volumes of children being taken out of school settings for 10, possibly 14 days, the risks of that happening at the volumes that they are may be well greater than the risks of them catching covid and becoming sick with covid which are not that significant."
