As more states are dropping mask mandates for students, the reaction has been surprisingly muted.
Could this possibly be related to the fact that four Democratic governors are issuing the orders?
And that many parents nationwide are simply fed up?
And that COVID-19 cases are now plunging, giving people a greater sense of security?
One thing hasn’t changed: The CDC is still out of step and its stance is confusing.
The governors of New Jersey, Delaware, Connecticut and California have all ordered their school mask mandates dropped, either immediately or in the coming weeks. New Jersey’s Phil Murphy has been particularly outspoken, saying "this is not a declaration of victory as much as an acknowledgment that we can responsibly live with this thing." And New York Gov. Kathy Hochul lifted an indoor mask mandate, starting today.
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Many conservatives, of course, have long viewed the mask mandates for students as an absurd overreaction that has taken a heavy toll. As a parent, I know all too well how hard it is for kids to wear face coverings six or seven hours a day and how it inhibits social interaction. Ron DeSantis in Florida and Greg Abbott in Texas took political heat for barring school mask mandates.
Friends wearing face mask talking during break time at school. (iStock)
At the start of the pandemic, when we had no vaccines and virtually no testing, most schools were shut down. When they eventually reopened, mask wearing was mandatory in many places.
Keep in mind that the FDA approved vaccines for 5- to 11-year-olds only at the end of October. Under 23% of Americans in that age group are fully vaccinated, along with 56% of 12- to 17-year-olds.
Politics, pandemic colliding
But with the omicron surge of daily cases now down to 250,000 – still high, but a 62% drop in two weeks – politics and the pandemic are once again colliding.
While the moves by the Democratic governors did not ignite an explosion, some of "the experts" don’t like it.
ABC News quotes a Northwestern University professor, Mercedes Carnethon, as saying "Governor Murphy's decision is a politically based one because there is tremendous pressure coming upon everyone to get rid of the pandemic and stop talking about it and stop dealing with it because we're all tired of this pandemic. It is not scientifically based and I don't think it is a rational approach based upon what we're still seeing."
Then-GOP gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin speaks to reporters in Fairfax, Virginia, Sept. 23, 2021. (Getty Images)
While she’s right about the political pressure, you have to wonder whether some doctors and scientists will find anything other than zero to be an acceptable risk. And schoolkids have proven to be a less vulnerable population, and more likely to have mild infections if they get the coronavirus.
And the battles continue in such states as Virginia, where newly elected Gov. Glenn Youngkin issued an order allowing parents to decide about their children’s masks. The state's Supreme Court just rejected a parents' lawsuit to overturn the order.
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Democrats' hypocrisy
Hypocritical behavior among Democrats keeps surfacing, such as when Stacey Abrams was photographed without a mask while reading to a group of masked students, or L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti saying he held his breath when posing maskless for photos at the NFC Championship Game. Hard to grasp when there are obviously cameras around.
Georgia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams spoke without a mask to masked students at Glennwood Elementary School in Decatur, Georgia, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022. (OutKick)
So with the nationwide trend clearly moving toward relaxation restrictions, the CDC, which has regularly muddled its message with contradictory and belated decisions, is standing pat.
Based on the CDC, White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Monday: "The guidance is very clear, which is that we recommend masking in schools." That is regardless of vaccination status.
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An agency spokesperson told CNN that "CDC guidance is meant to supplement — not replace — any federal, state, tribal, local, or territorial health and safety laws, rules, and regulations."
But with that standard, and its resistance to change, the agency’s guidance has basically become irrelevant. Governors and school districts are doing what they want. The federal agency is no longer part of the conversation.
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With growing research that masks aren’t as effective as we thought – at least if they’re not N95 or KN95 – local officials are rolling with the tide of public opinion in beginning to phase out the mandates. That is not without risk, but we all realize now, entering the pandemic’s third year, that endless restrictions carry their own risks, especially for kids.