Covid-19 outbreaks are far more likely in schools that don’t require students and staff to wear masks, new data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows.
Two studies released [September 24] support the agency’s recommendation for universal indoor masking in schools.
One study in Arizona showed schools with no masking requirement were about 3.5 times more likely to have a Covid-19 outbreak than schools that had a universal masking requirement.
A second study showed counties across the US where schools required mask use also had less transmission of the virus in the community in general.
The CDC emphasizes the importance of “layered prevention strategies” — including vaccination, testing, enhanced ventilation and physical distancing along with masking.
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Dr. Scott Gottlieb, former commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration and a board member of Pfizer, said that it’s not yet time for masks to be optional in schools.
“I think we’re going to have to get to a point where the vaccines are widely available in schools,” he told CNN [September 23]. “Schools aren’t inherently safe environments, but they can be made more safe by taking proper precautions. Masks are certainly one tool.”
