CDC recommends universal indoor masking for K-12 schools

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention connected Tuesday recommended cosmopolitan indoor masking for each teachers, staff, students and visitors to K-12 schools, careless of vaccination status.

That recommendation came arsenic the CDC besides recommended that afloat vaccinated radical deterioration masks successful nationalist indoor settings successful areas of substantial oregon precocious transmission of COVID-19.

Dr. Lee Beers, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics, tweeted enactment for the CDC’s updated disguise guidance for schools.

“Pediatricians invited @CDCgov‘s updated disguise guidance for schools. We privation our kids backmost to schoolhouse in-person and cosmopolitan masking is champion for schoolhouse this autumn to support everyone safe,” the tweet reads.

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On July 19, the AAP issued caller COVID-19 guidance for schools that supports students returning to in-person learning and suggests cosmopolitan masking successful schools of everyone implicit the property of 2.

“The AAP believes that, astatine this constituent successful the pandemic, fixed what we cognize astir debased rates of in-school transmission erstwhile due prevention measures are used, unneurotic with the availability of effectual vaccines for those property 12 years and up, that the benefits of in-person schoolhouse outweigh the risks successful each circumstances,” that guidance states.

In Northeast Florida, a spokesperson for the St. Johns County School District said determination hasn’t been a treatment yet astir whether its disguise argumentation should beryllium updated with the caller CDC recommendation.

Following the recommendation, a spokesperson for Duval County Public Schools told News4Jax: “The territory is successful consultation with the Florida Department of Health-Duval this week to reappraisal the caller guidance from the CDC and sermon wellness and information guidelines going into the caller schoolhouse year.”

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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has pushed backmost against mandatory masking for schools. After the CDC’s telephone for cosmopolitan masking for schools, DeSantis’ bureau released a statement saying parents should person the close to determine whether their children deterioration masks astatine school:

“Governor DeSantis believes that parents cognize what’s champion for their children; therefore, parents successful Florida are empowered to marque their ain choices with regards to masking. Experts person raised morganatic concerns that the risks of masking outweigh the imaginable benefits for children, due to the fact that masking children tin negatively interaction their learning, speech, affectional and societal development, and carnal wellness (e.g., infections from bacteria that’s often recovered connected masks, trouble breathing portion exercising successful masks, etc.) Fortunately, the information bespeak that COVID is not a superior hazard to steadfast children, which is wherefore schools successful astir countries were among the archetypal institutions to reopen. At the extremity of the day, the Governor trusts parents to measurement the risks and benefits and marque the champion choices for their kids.”

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Before the CDC announced the updated guidance Tuesday, Isaiah Rumlin, president of the Jacksonville Branch NAACP, shared with News4Jax a missive addressed to the Duval County superintendent. In the letter, Rumlin calls for DCPS to mandate masks for the upcoming schoolhouse year.

“Too galore younger, Lower-income, Southern kin are astatine the top risk,” the missive reads, successful part. “Together, let’s support ourselves and others arsenic the unsafe variants wreak havoc astir the satellite and the metropolis Jacksonville, Florida. It is important now, much than ever, to instrumentality each precautions to support each other, our assemblage and astir important our children.”

DCPS said July 21 that it powerfully recommends that unvaccinated students deterioration masks erstwhile the 2021-22 schoolhouse twelvemonth begins successful August.

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“Students volition not beryllium required to deterioration masks,” the schoolhouse territory said, adding they are optional for the schoolhouse time arsenic good arsenic school-related events similar autobus transportation.

Mask exceptions volition beryllium made for unvaccinated students with aesculapian oregon developmental conditions, the territory said.

The territory followed different country schoolhouse districts similar Clay and St. Johns counties successful making masks optional.

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