When should DC drop its school mask mandate?

[Anonymous]

Can we please separate the desire to stop using masks now or soon (as cases plunge with milder variant) from whether they were necessary earlier on in pandemic?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can we please separate the desire to stop using masks now or soon (as cases plunge with milder variant) from whether they were necessary earlier on in pandemic?

Why? Whether there was ever good evidence for masking kids is a fair question and relevant to the discussion about how long the practice should continue.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Today! Get rid of the mask mandates today, immediately. DC daily stats are very low. If someone wants to continue to mask up go ahead, no one will stop you or your child.

Except that the daily stats are not actually very low. They’ve actually plateaued high.

You can’t just make up facts.

Nor can you (make up daily stats). Check https://coronavirus.dc.gov/key-metrics

Umm that shows a weekly case rate of 231.6 /100k. That’s close to as high as ever pre-omicron.

Did you actually understand the data. You are referring to a "weekly" case rate from Jan 31. That is a week ago which includes cases 7 days prior to Jan 31. Todays numbers are much lower (note the daily rate posted on Jan 31 is only 33 cases) which is nowhere near 231. Please read ALL the date/info, case numbers have dropped like a rock.

Are you really comparing a daily case rate to a weekly case rate lol? Try multiplying your 33 by 7. What do get? Also it’s not 33 cases. It’s 33 cases/100k. You can make an agreement for dropping masks, but don’t pretend the cases are low.

Current stats show DC is now below the early fall numbers (Sept/Oct). That the stats continued to improve. This is good news! Of course I'm not comparing the daily rate to the weekly rate!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Today! Get rid of the mask mandates today, immediately. DC daily stats are very low. If someone wants to continue to mask up go ahead, no one will stop you or your child.

Except that the daily stats are not actually very low. They’ve actually plateaued high.

You can’t just make up facts.

Nor can you (make up daily stats). Check https://coronavirus.dc.gov/key-metrics

Umm that shows a weekly case rate of 231.6 /100k. That’s close to as high as ever pre-omicron.

Did you actually understand the data. You are referring to a "weekly" case rate from Jan 31. That is a week ago which includes cases 7 days prior to Jan 31. Todays numbers are much lower (note the daily rate posted on Jan 31 is only 33 cases) which is nowhere near 231. Please read ALL the date/info, case numbers have dropped like a rock.

Are you really comparing a daily case rate to a weekly case rate lol? Try multiplying your 33 by 7. What do get? Also it’s not 33 cases. It’s 33 cases/100k. You can make an agreement for dropping masks, but don’t pretend the cases are low.

Current stats show DC is now below the early fall numbers (Sept/Oct). That the stats continued to improve. This is good news! Of course I'm not comparing the daily rate to the weekly rate!

The early fall numbers were during the Delta wave. That’s not a great benchmark.

[Anonymous]

Case numbers should be considered irrelevant. Kids are low risk to begin with, and we have vaccines.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m sure DC will be among the last to drop so I’m not holding my breath. At most, I think we might see dropping it for outdoor activities / drop off/ pick up as that’s really just COVID theatre.

I've not worn a mask at drop off or pickup in months, and no one seems to care. I'm not the only one, either.

You're a rebel and inconsiderate. It's all about you and how inconvenient wearing a mask is for you but never thinking of others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:mom and teacher here. masks are NBD. at all. the people who care so much about masks are not the kids at school.

Masks are big deals for kids that are in speech therapy and need to see mouth and tongue placement.

Masks are needed for immunocompromised individuals that can't be vaccinated. So your child can't see someone's mouth and tongue and has trouble speaking, while my child can die because of covid. Some of you are so selfish.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:mom and teacher here. masks are NBD. at all. the people who care so much about masks are not the kids at school.

Masks are big deals for kids that are in speech therapy and need to see mouth and tongue placement.

Masks are needed for immunocompromised individuals that can't be vaccinated. So your child can't see someone's mouth and tongue and has trouble speaking, while my child can die because of covid. Some of you are so selfish.

How about you are selfish?! If your child is high risk keep him/her home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:mom and teacher here. masks are NBD. at all. the people who care so much about masks are not the kids at school.

Masks are big deals for kids that are in speech therapy and need to see mouth and tongue placement.

Masks are needed for immunocompromised individuals that can't be vaccinated. So your child can't see someone's mouth and tongue and has trouble speaking, while my child can die because of covid. Some of you are so selfish.

How about you are selfish?! If your child is high risk keep him/her home.

I think the longer this goes on more people are going to ignore the mask mandates. They are so ridiculous. A while ago they seemed cool and all but it’s got to end. We’re done. Over.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Masks are needed for immunocompromised individuals that can't be vaccinated. So your child can't see someone's mouth and tongue and has trouble speaking, while my child can die because of covid. Some of you are so selfish.

They kids are not wearing N95s. The masks do nothing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:mom and teacher here. masks are NBD. at all. the people who care so much about masks are not the kids at school.

Masks are big deals for kids that are in speech therapy and need to see mouth and tongue placement.

Masks are needed for immunocompromised individuals that can't be vaccinated. So your child can't see someone's mouth and tongue and has trouble speaking, while my child can die because of covid. Some of you are so selfish.

Then immunocompromised individuals, whether they are vaccinated or not, should have access to the best possible masks. I fully support making sure your child has access to a KN95 or N95 mask and any other necessary accommodation to ensure they can safely attend school.

There is a lot of evidence that masks protect the wearer, even if no one else is wearing a mask. And this is particularly true if the person is wearing a well fitting medical grade mask. I think we should make sure the small number of kids with this kind of vulnerability have access to such masks, and I think they should be provided by the school district and schools should make sure these children also have access to safe places to eat.

However, right now if you child is in a DCPS classroom, they are surrounded by kids wearing ill-fitting masks, often cotton or surgical masks that are unlikely to provide much protection beyond a short period even when worn perfectly. And kids aren't wearing them perfectly. And as this thread has shown, teachers have given up trying to make them wear them perfectly because they are trying to teach. The status quo is NOT protecting your child. PLUS it's negatively impacting not only kids in need of speech therapy, but all kids who who are struggling to communicate and connect socially with teachers and peers. The current situation benefits no one. It is truly Covid safety theater, burdening many to benefit no one.

Let's get your kid in a really good mask and and stop pretending that the bad masks the other kids are wearing are doing anything but inhibiting learning and socializing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Getting rid of masks also has to come with stopping draconian quarantine policies. I want my kid to mask so she doesn’t get COVID so she doesn’t end of being out for a week or more. I’m not worried about COVID given what we now know that it is mild for those who are vaxxed.

Yes. And, if it was forced choice, I would drop testing and mandatory quarantine times (stay home when sick, like other illnesses) before masks.

[Anonymous]

I think people are exaggerating the impact of masks on kids. The most important thing is that they’re in school, together, in person. My kids have never said there was any issue socializing with other kids just because their mask is on. It’s not an issue for them. I’ve actually enjoyed not having them (and us) horribly sick with something 6 months out of the year. It’s so nice to not deal with that!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Immediately

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think people are exaggerating the impact of masks on kids. The most important thing is that they’re in school, together, in person. My kids have never said there was any issue socializing with other kids just because their mask is on. It’s not an issue for them. I’ve actually enjoyed not having them (and us) horribly sick with something 6 months out of the year. It’s so nice to not deal with that!

I agree that many kids just don't care. Mine moved to kn95s during omicron and still don't care. BUT, they are a sign of holding on to pandemic thinking/behavior. And, we need to move on to treating this as one of the common illnesses kids can get at school ... sick kids stay home, but siblings of sick kids that are healthy are not staying home, not testing for the disease, not in a constant state of over vigilance/anxiety.

I think, for DC, there will have to be a federal level change before we'll see local level.