California ‘getting close’ to ending school masking requirement, top health official says

COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are rapidly falling in California to the point where health officials are getting close to ditching the state’s mask mandate in schools. But the state’s top health official said he’s not ready to pull the trigger just yet, though he “anticipates” being able to announce in two weeks a likely end date.

“Masking requirements were never put in place to be there forever,” Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said. “It’s not a question of if. It’s a question of when.”

Ghaly said that cases, hospitalizations, vaccination rates and national and global trends would all play a role over the next two weeks as the state reassesses conditions. On Feb. 28, Ghaly said he plans to announce when the mandate would move to "a strong recommendation."

Pandemic trends are moving in the right direction, he said. Ghaly said that COVID-19 cases are down more than 75% from a month ago and hospitalizations among those with the virus have fallen more than 40%.

The test positivity rate has fallen nearly 73% for the same period, he said. The state’s rate was 6.2% as of Monday, compared to 22.9% on Jan. 14.

He said that California's approach on schools so far has been a “winning formula” because California has the most K-12 public school students in the country – 12% – but schools in the state have experienced fewer school closures than others, less than 1%.

Asked what he would say to parents who think it’s already past time to unmask their kids, Ghaly said he understands such frustration. But he said the state was taking the time to confirm that data trends remain headed in the same direction.

The decision to downgrade a mandate to a recommendation on masks will be “met with excitement from some and fear from others,” he said.

Ghaly’s announcement comes as the state’s mandate that vaccinated people wear masks indoors is set to expire after Tuesday. Masking will still be required for unvaccinated people and at health care facilities and places like jails and long-term care facilities.

Ghaly said masking indoors will still be “strongly recommended” for everyone.

KCRA 3 spoke to families in Sacramento’s Land Park neighborhood Monday after the state’s announcement.

Parents and students had mixed reactions.

Ninth-grader Eugenia Chazov is part of an independent study program, but her little brother Samuel goes to his third-grade classes in person.

“I understand why it would be needed but it kind of seems unnecessary,” Chazov said.

Samuel told KCRA 3 he likes wearing his mask because he doesn’t “get sick that often” and it makes him feel “safe.”

Natasha Greer, a parent of two school-aged children, is relieved the school mask mandate is continuing through February.

“It's hit very close to home,” Greer said. “I think that especially with the rise in the number of cases since they came back from vacation, I think it’s a good idea to keep them on at school.”

Her 12-year-old son Nathaniel said he will continue wearing his mask to stay safe, but he’s anxious to be able to go to school mask-free.

“It’s been very difficult because wearing a mask isn’t to my liking,” Nathaniel told KCRA 3. “It’s really irritating not being able to hear people as well.”

Other parents told KCRA 3 they are indifferent to the state’s guidance.

KCRA 3 reached out to the Sacramento City Unified School District regarding that guidance. A spokesperson sent the following statement:

“Sacramento City Unified’s masking policy remains unchanged since our return to in-person instruction in the Fall of 2021. At this time, there are no plans to change our health and safety guidelines but will continue to consult with Sacramento County Public Health for additional guidance. Although cases have lowered county wide over the last few weeks, the case rate is at 41.9, and our efforts are focused on doing our part to further decrease the rate of infections in our community by providing high filtration masks and at-home testing kits to our students and staff, conducting routine testing, and offering vaccination clinics.”

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Source: KCRA News

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