(The Center Square) – A parents group is
not on board with the latest guidance on masks in schools from the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The agency recommended Friday that schools fully reopen in the fall. It
also recommended masks be worn by students who are not vaccinated. The
CDC also recommended that schools maintain at least 3 feet of physical
distance between students within classrooms to reduce transmission risk.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Public Health have
adopted the guidelines.
“It focuses on what I have been focused on for more than a year now,
which is everybody’s safety and health,” Pritzker said.
The guidance notes that many schools serve children younger than 12 who
are not yet eligible for vaccination. The guidance emphasizes
implementing layered prevention strategies – such as masking, distancing
and testing – to protect people who are not fully vaccinated.
The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine has been authorized for use in kids ages 12
and up. The companies said they plan to request emergency use
authorization in kids ages 5-11 in the fall.
The CDC also said schools may opt to make mask use universally required
regardless of vaccination status.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker reacts to new CDC
guidance about masks in schools Friday.
BlueRoomStream
Marsha McClary, with the group Illinois Parents
Union, said kids rarely get COVID-19 and her group doesn’t think
masks are needed in schools.
“I also feel very strongly that discriminating medically whether
someone has been vaccinated or not vaccinated, whether they have
antibodies or not is completely inappropriate,” McClary said.
She said mask use should be left up to the parents and their
children.
The CDC guidance also noted that promoting vaccination can help
facilitate that school districts safely return to in-person learning
as well as extracurricular activities and sports.
