ATLANTA, Oct. 20 (UPI) -- A 2005 report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control showing high rates of death from a drug resistant staph strain has prompted concern in U.S. schools.

The study said 19,000 people died in the United States in 2005 from an antibiotic-resistant Staphylococcus bacteria strain called MRSA. The report cites more MRSA-related deaths in the United States than deaths caused by AIDS.

Nicole Coffin of the CDC told The New York Times (NYSE:NYT) roughly 85 percent of all reported cases were in healthcare facilities, adding the survival rates for MRSA infection were typically quite high.

This week, several schools closed or canceled events due to outbreaks across the country. Several Detroit-area schools closed for sanitary reasons after officials learned students were being treated for possible infections, the Free Press reported.

A high school student in Ohio was placed in intensive care from a staph infection in September and a 17-year-old Virginia man died Monday from the bacterial infection.

School and health officials are launching a re-education campaign to teach proper sanitation techniques, such as hand-washing and other hygienic preventions.