States enforce mask mandates in schools due to delta variant
Former acting CDC director Dr. Richard Besser joined 'The Story' to discuss mask mandates in schools amid the outbreak of the COVID delta variant
The Austin Independent School District joined Dallas this week in mandating masks in schools, challenging Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's order banning mask mandates by local governments and other entities.
Austin Superintendent Stephanie S. Elizalde said at a specially called board meeting on Monday night that starting Wednesday, the school district "will require masking of all individuals, all visitors, on all district property, at campuses, and at any other district offices."
"I am responsible for the safety, health and welfare of each and every one of our students and our staff. If I err, I must err on the side of ensuring that we’ve been overly cautious, not that we have fallen short," Elizalde said at the board meeting.
The move to mandate masks for Austin's 75,075 students came after the Dallas Independent School District, which serves more than 150,000 students, implemented new masking rules earlier on Monday.
"I felt now we are in an urgent crisis. Despite whatever authority the governor has, he is responsible for the state of Texas and I’m responsible for Dallas ISD," Dallas Superintendent Michael Hinojosa said Monday.
SCHOOLS REOPEN WITH MASKS OPTIONAL IN MANY U.S. CLASSROOMS
The Houston Independent School District, the largest district in the state with nearly 200,000 students, announced last week that it would implement a mask mandate pending approval by the board this Thursday.
A Texas district judge also granted a temporary restraining order to San Antonio and Bexar County on Tuesday that will allow them to implement mask mandates pending another hearing on Monday, the Texas Tribune reported.
Abbott lifted Texas's mask mandate in March, then issued an executive order in May banning local governments from implementing their own mandates.
"We are all working to protect Texas children and those most vulnerable among us, but violating the Governor’s executive orders—and violating parental rights—is not the way to do it," Abbott's press secretary, Renae Eze, said in a statement Tuesday. "Governor Abbott has been clear that the time for mask mandates is over; now is the time for personal responsibility. Parents and guardians have the right to decide whether their child will wear a mask or not, just as with any other decision in their child’s life."
Texas is currently battling the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic, with the 7-day average of new cases reaching 10,000 this month for the first time since early February.
Abbott directed the Texas Department of State Health Services on Monday to use staffing agencies to bring medical personnel in from out of state to fight the surging cases, and also asked hospitals to voluntarily postpone elective procedures.
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So far, 53.5% of all Texans have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 44.6% are fully vaccinated, according to the CDC.
Abbott's office emphasized the importance of vaccines on Tuesday, with his press secretary saying that "we continue to strongly encourage all eligible Texans to get vaccinated."
Fox News's Greg Norman contributed to this report, as well as the Associated Press.
