Maine’s CDC and Department of Education have revised COVID-19 contact tracing requirements for some schools.

The Maine Department of Education said Wednesday that schools with a universal masking policy can choose to suspend contact tracing.

They said that with the Omicron variant being much more transmissible, contact tracing is less effective and has become increasingly difficult for school personnel.

Officials say those schools can instead focus on other mitigation strategies like pooled testing. Schools that can still effectively contact trace are encouraged to continue doing so.

“These recommendations allow teachers and school staff to focus their limited resources on educating students in the classroom as safely as possible,” said Education Commissioner Pender Makin and Maine CDC Director Nirav Shah in a statement. “Getting vaccinated remains the most important step to protecting our school communities.”