Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Mask Wars Even Extend To Schools Though Most Kids Still Unvaccinated
Des Moines Register: Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds Signs Ban On Mask Mandates At Schools, Local Governments
Leaders of Iowa school districts cannot require students or staff to wear masks and Iowa cities and counties cannot impose mask mandates under a law Gov. Kim Reynolds signed early Thursday. The law, which goes into effect immediately, passed the House by a 53-35 vote and passed the Senate by a 29-17 vote in the waning hours of the 2021 legislative session. It was part of a larger education bill that would expand open enrollment in Iowa. Both votes split along party lines. (Richarsdson, 5/20)
The Hill: Utah Legislature Passes Prohibition On Mask Mandates In Schools
The Utah legislature has passed a bill prohibiting schools from requiring masks. The legislation “prohibits a face covering requirement to participate in or attend instruction, activities or any other place on the school campus or facilities in the system of public education after the end of the 2020-2021 school year,” according to its text. It further prevents higher education institutions and the Utah Board of Higher Education from requiring face coverings after the end of the spring semester of 2021. (Williams, 5/19)
Miami Herald: Miami-Dade Schools Will Make Masks Optional For Outdoor Activities
Effective immediately, Miami-Dade Public Schools is making masks optional only for outdoor, socially distanced activities. All other COVID-19 protocols will stay in place for the last two weeks of this school year. Looking forward to the fall, the nation’s fourth-largest school district may make masks optional for the 2021-22 school year. (Wright, 5/19)
The Hill: Michigan Health Officials Urging Schools To Maintain Mask Requirements
Michigan health officials are telling schools that students, teachers and other faculty should still wear masks for the rest of the school year regardless of vaccination status. Bob Wheaton, a spokesman for the state health department, told The Associated Press that the new guidelines will be announced Wednesday. Most students have less than a month of school left for the academic year, but mask mandates throughout the country are beginning to shift due to increased vaccination rates. (Lonas, 5/19)
In other state pandemic news —
North Carolina Health News: The Next ‘New Normal’: Navigating Full Immunity
Coronavirus changed much of daily life in the last year and a half, but as more North Carolinians get vaccinated, activities that just recently seemed inconceivable are returning to our lives. Fully vaccinated people can now travel and be in public without a mask. With weddings, concerts and family reunions on the horizon once more, the next new normal, one that resembles the life we had before, is emerging. (Engel-Smith, 5/20)
The New York Times: How Do You Persuade New Yorkers To Be Vaccinated? Knock On Their Doors
On a recent morning, Tomas Ramos, a community organizer, and two colleagues rode the elevator to the 21st floor of a tower in the Webster Houses, a public-housing project in the Bronx. Working their way down, one floor at a time, they knocked on every door. Sometimes a voice from inside an apartment called out, “I’m not getting vaccinated.” Other times the person behind the door simply went silent after Mr. Ramos, 34, explained he was signing people up for vaccinations. But on the 13th floor, Biency Paulino answered the door, flanked by her mother and her 5-year-old son, Christopher, who giggled at the sight of strangers during such a lonely year. (Goldstein, 5/20)
KHN: Despite Pandemic, Newsom Declines To Boost Local Public Health Budgets — Again
In spite of a pandemic that has killed about 62,000 Californians — more than enough to pack Dodger Stadium — Gov. Gavin Newsom has again declined to boost the budgets of the state’s underfunded and understaffed local public health departments. Local public health officials, responsible for steering the state’s covid-19 response, had asked the Democratic governor for $200 million per year for the nuts and bolts of public health, starting in the 2021-22 budget year, which kicks off July 1. (Hart, 5/20)
