{"id":469,"date":"2021-07-27T16:31:00","date_gmt":"2021-07-27T21:31:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/?p=469"},"modified":"2021-08-09T16:23:21","modified_gmt":"2021-08-09T21:23:21","slug":"were-recommending-everybody-wear-masks-right-now-cdc-calls-for-school-masks-regardless-of-vaccination-status","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cooper-for-all.local\/news\/were-recommending-everybody-wear-masks-right-now-cdc-calls-for-school-masks-regardless-of-vaccination-status\/","title":{"rendered":"‘We’re recommending everybody wear masks right now’: CDC calls for school masks regardless of vaccination status"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Some officials blame the need for masks on the highly-transmissible Delta variant, vaccine hesitancy and a limited share of vaccinated K-12 students.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Juan Perez Jr.<\/a> from politico.com<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday recommended universal masking indoors for all K-12 school teachers, staff, students and visitors \u2014 marking a sharp shift to tighten the agency\u2019s guidance as most children remain unvaccinated against Covid-19 just weeks before the fall semester.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis pandemic continues to pose a serious threat to the health of all Americans,\u201d CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said Tuesday, citing \u201cworrisome\u201d concerns over rare cases of vaccinated individuals getting infected and potentially still spreading the highly-contagious Delta virus variant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“In areas with substantial and high transmission, CDC recommends fully-vaccinated people wear masks in public indoor settings to help prevent the spread of the Delta variant and protect others \u2014 this includes schools,” Walensky told reporters, adding that children should still return to in-person instruction this fall with proper protective measures in place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some health and education officials blame the continued need for school masks on the highly-transmissible Delta variant, vaccine hesitancy and a limited share of vaccinated K-12 students. Yet schools and states may face an uphill battle in carrying out the new guidance, given sharp political divisions over classroom virus safety measures and state bans on school mask mandates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

State woes:<\/strong> The CDC\u2019s new guidance better aligns with that of the American Academy of Pediatrics, a prominent organization that countered prior federal guidance last week by pushing schools to adopt universal mask policies for workers and students older than 2 years of age ahead of the new school year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Next week we have many school systems that are starting around the country,” Walensky said. “I think we all agree that children [age] 11 and less are not going to be able to be vaccinated, and with only 30 percent of our kids between 12 and 17 fully vaccinated now, more cases in this country, and a real effort to try and make sure that our kids can safely get back to full in-person learning in the fall, we’re recommending that everybody wear masks right now.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But in Texas, for example, Democrats are pressing Republican Gov. Greg Abbott to rescind his ban on school mask requirements<\/a> and allow schools to have virtual learning this fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cChildren under twelve cannot get a COVID vaccine, which means they are vectors of infection for each other, their teachers, and their family members,\u201d Texas state Rep. Vikki Goodwin and more than 30 colleagues wrote last week<\/a> in a letter to Abbott and Texas Education Agency Commissioner Mike Morath. \u201cPutting them all in one building without masks is foolish.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And while Arizona Republican Gov. Doug Ducey recently urged his state\u2019s residents to get vaccinated, he also suggested the government won\u2019t revisit its recently-approved bans on in-school face covering and vaccination requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cArizonans have the ability to protect themselves from COVID-19 thanks to the vaccine. Businesses are open, students are back in the classroom, loved ones are gathering and our economy is booming,\u201d Ducey said last week<\/a>. \u201cWe\u2019re going to keep it that way. We will not be listening to the lockdown lobby. Businesses will stay open. Students will be able to attend school. There will be no mask mandates.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Union reaction:<\/strong> \u201cTo ensure we have safe, equitable in-person instruction for every student in America, we must follow the science and listen to the medical experts at CDC,\u201d National Education Association President Becky Pringle said in a statement. \u201c The evidence is clear that masks provide important protection against Covid-19 and provide the greatest protection for all of us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten meanwhile pointed to a \u201ctroubling surge\u201d of variant cases in under-vaccinated communities, plus the potential for vaccinated people to still get infected and spread the virus even though they\u2019re far more likely to escape serious illness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Masking inside schools, regardless of vaccine status, is required as an important way to deal with the changing realities of virus transmission,” Weingarten said. “It is a necessary precaution until children under 12 can receive a Covid vaccine and more Americans over 12 get vaccinated.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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