Medical expert equates schools with unmasked children to ‘toxic swamp of COVID’

On the heels of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommending cosmopolitan indoor masking for each teachers, staff, students and visitors astatine K-12 schools, careless of vaccination status, the erstwhile manager of the Duval County Health Department took it a measurement further during an interrogation Wednesday connected The Morning Show, saying determination should beryllium a statewide schoolhouse disguise mandate.

“What we bash cognize is that masks work, that masks successful peculiar successful schools forestall the dispersed of COVID,” said Dr. Jeffrey Goldhagen, who is presently a prof astatine the UF College of Medicine. “Parents would not fto their children aquatics successful a toxic swamp. If they let their children to spell into environments successful which determination are radical who are unmasked -- including schools, including supermarkets, wherever -- they are successful information allowing their children to aquatics successful a toxic swamp of COVID.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has repeatedly declined to instrumentality disguise mandates, saying helium does not judge they work. During a circular array treatment Monday, which was not disclosed to the nationalist up of time, DeSantis met with a radical of supporters to discuss, and heavy criticize, the thought of wearing look coverings successful Florida schools.

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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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Goldhagen accused DeSantis of playing authorities with children’s lives and utilizing them arsenic governmental pawns.

“Families should not beryllium taking their children into immoderate situation successful which determination are radical who are unmasked, irrespective of their vaccine status,” Goldhagen said.

The CDC’s recommendation for masks successful schools 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, changing people from its guidance successful May that said afloat vaccinated radical could halt wearing masks outdoors successful crowds and successful astir indoor settings.

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

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.

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“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.

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Cases of the delta variant are surging with children acceptable to instrumentality to schoolhouse successful conscionable weeks.

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