Many States Dump Mask Mandates
Some states, like New York, will still require masks in schools. Others, like Massachusetts and Rhode Island, will make them optional for students. Some parents and doctors say it's too risky, too soon.
USA Today:
New York, Illinois To Lift Mask Mandates, Against CDC's Advice
New York state will end a mandate requiring face coverings in most indoor public settings but will keep school masking rules in place, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Wednesday. Later in the day, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said his state will follow a similar path. They are the latest in a series of states to roll back mask mandates amid a decline in daily coronavirus infection and hospitalization numbers. Still, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday that for now her agency continues to recommend masking in areas of substantial transmission – most of the nation. (Bacon, Ortiz and Tebor, 2/9)
The New York Times:
A Guide To Mask Requirements In N.Y., N.J. And Connecticut
Masks will still be required in New York City while riding public transportation, including when taking car services and taxis. They will still be required when inside a school, in a child care or a health care setting, and at group residential facilities such as nursing homes and homeless shelters. (Otterman and Goldstein, 2/9)
The Boston Globe:
Mass. School Mask Mandate Lifted, But No Road Map For What Comes Next
Masks will no longer be required in Massachusetts schools as of Feb. 28, Governor Charlie Baker announced Wednesday, joining a growing list of governors, including several in the Northeast, who have recently made face coverings optional as COVID-19 cases wane across much of the country. “Given the extremely low risk to young people, and the widespread availability of, and proven effectiveness of, vaccines, and the distribution of accurate test protocols and tests, it’s time to give our kids a sense of normalcy and lift the mask mandate on a statewide basis for schools,” Baker said at a State House briefing that drew protesters who demanded an end to government vaccine mandates. (Lazar, Tziperman Lotan and Andersen, 2/9)
AP:
Rhode Island Eases Mask Restrictions At Businesses, Schools
Rhode Island will lift its mask or proof-of-vaccination requirement for indoor businesses Friday, and plans on ending the statewide school mask mandate early next month, Gov. Dan McKee said Wednesday. The decision made in consultation with public health officials comes as key metrics used to measure the spread of the coronavirus, including new cases, percent positive rates, and hospitalizations continue to drop since the peak of the omicron surge, the Democratic governor said at a news conference. (2/10)
The Hill:
Kemp Looks To Make Masking Optional In Georgia Schools
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) is looking to pass legislation that would make masking optional in the state's schools, but is facing criticism from his main primary challenger that he didn't move fast enough. Kemp on Wednesday said he is working with state lawmakers on legislation that would allow parents to opt their children out of school mask mandates. (Schnell, 2/9)
AP:
California To Soon Begin 'Endemic' Approach To Pandemic
California health officials next week will outline a new approach to dealing with the coronavirus that assumes it’s here to stay, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday, while condemning organized disinformation efforts that limit vaccinations critical to California entering the next stage. A disease reaches the endemic stage when the virus still exists in a community but becomes manageable as immunity builds. (Thompson, 2/10)
Also —
AP:
11 San Francisco Bay Area Counties To Lift Indoor Mask Order
Eleven San Francisco Bay Area counties will lift their mask requirements for vaccinated people in most indoor public settings beginning Feb. 16, when the state also ends its indoor masking requirement for those vaccinated against the coronavirus, officials announced Tuesday. Unvaccinated people over age 2 will continue to be required to wear masks in all indoor public settings. Everyone will still have to wear a mask in schools, public transportation, nursing homes and other congregate living facilities, officials in the Bay Area counties said. (2/10)
AP:
Mask Mandates Extended In Omaha, Lincoln Even As Cases Fall
Mask mandates have been extended in Nebraska’s two largest cities because virus cases and hospitalizations remain higher than health officials want to see even though they are falling. Omaha officials announced their decision Wednesday to extend their mandate a week a day after Lancaster County officials said their mandate would continue through Feb. 25. (Funk, 2/9)
AP:
As State Mask Rules End, School Leaders Are In The Middle
As some of the last statewide mask mandates in the U.S. near an end, decisions about whether students and teachers should continue to wear masks in school are shifting to local leaders, who are caught in the middle of one of the most combustible issues of the pandemic. “Unfortunately, this is an issue where you are not going to make everybody happy,” said Jeffrey Solan, school superintendent in Cheshire, Connecticut. “We can’t allow those individual passions to decide the debate.” (Thompson, 2/9)
