Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Different Takes: Should Schools Be Unmasking?; Examining Covid's Effects On Our Mental Health
The Baltimore Sun: Maryland Lawmakers Must Do Their Homework On School Mask Mandate
Not so fast on lifting Maryland’s statewide regulation that students wear masks in schools. We mean that literally. Not. So. Fast. On Friday, the General Assembly’s Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive, and Legislative Review (AELR) is set to consider Tuesday’s decision by the Maryland State Board of Education to rescind that emergency regulation. It would be easy for the 19 delegates and senators who serve on the regulatory oversight committee to simply wave it along. COVID-19 fatigue is high, and pandemic metrics are — thankfully — improving. Gov. Larry Hogan endorsed the idea, along with his fellow Republicans, and so did State Superintendent of Schools, Mohammed Choudhury. (2/23)
USA Today: Our Mental Health Has Suffered. And It's OK To Acknowledge That Fact
It’s no surprise the pandemic has battered our collective well-being. But it might come as a surprise that the pandemic has provided an opportunity to restore our mental well-being. We now are finally engaged in a meaningful conversation about mental health and substance use challenges, and this change has helped reduce the stigma surrounding treatment. (Chuck Ingoglia, 2/23)
The CT Mirror: Reimagining Connecticut’s Behavioral Health System For Children
The pandemic has revealed to the public that our children’s behavioral health system is in desperate need of investment and expansion. The fear, stress, social isolation, grief, and trauma associated with COVID-19 led to a higher prevalence and acuity of many behavioral health conditions. Youth, families, community providers, schools, pediatricians, and hospital emergency departments are overwhelmed. The crisis has hit under-resourced communities and families the hardest and exacerbated racial and ethnic health disparities. (Jeffrey Vanderploeg, 2/24)
Bloomberg: 'Follow The Science' Is A Slogan, Not A Policy
Almost everybody wants to be seen as embracing science. That’s true whether they are arguing to take masks off or leave them on, or whether they’re pushing continued caution or a return to normal. The phrase “follow the science” has been used by the left to defend its Covid policies and lobbed back by the right with a dose of sarcasm. But America’s pandemic polarization isn’t about recognizing the importance of science. It’s about what we do with that science, and when we decide to trade individual freedoms for collective safety. (Faye Flam, 2/23)
