Lawmakers mull masks as school COVID cases fall
The latest weekly numbers released Thursday showed that cases among students dropped to 1,755 from 4,203 the prior week.
As lawmakers weigh the fate of a handful of Gov. Ned Lamont’s executive orders, including the future of students and teachers wearing masks, COVID cases in schools continued to steadily drop for a fourth week.
The latest weekly numbers released Thursday showed that cases among students dropped to 1,755 from 4,203 the prior week. In a similar fashion, cases among teachers and staff fell to 355 this week, compared to 767 the previous week.
Though cases have dropped substantially since peaking the first week after students returned from Christmas vacation, the numbers remain higher than the fall when student infections peaked at 916 and cases among staff and teachers hit 145.
The future of the executive order that allows for masks remains in question as the legislature reviews the matter amid strong opposition from some parents, nearly 200 of them speaking out against masking children during a legislative forum Tuesday.
The House of Representatives discussed the matter Thursday with some Republican lawmakers arguing against any extension of the mask mandate.
Lamont has recommended the mandate remain in place until Feb. 28, and then empower local school boards to decide whether their students, teachers and staff need to wear masks.
If the legislature does not extend this specific order, one of a dozen Lamont has asked to remain in place, it would expire on Feb. 15.
The House was expected to vote on the matter Thursday and the Senate would then take it up on Monday.
The debate over whether to keep school masking in some form comes as Connecticut continues to see a general decline in infections, hospitalizations and new deaths after a surge in late December and early January.
On Thursday, the state reported 1,026 new COVID cases among 23,078 tests for a
positivity rate of 4.45 — one of the lowest in weeks. There were 23 fewer hospitalizations for a total of 529 — the lowest since Dec. 7.
The number of new deaths declined with 136 in the past week compared to 175 the previous week.
Looking at the decline in COVID-19 metrics, Lamont announced this week his plan to recommend lifting the school mask mandate at the end of the month, noting it was time for local officials to make the best decisions for their community.
This move closely mirrored how Lamont decided to handle general indoor masking requirements. Instead of broadly reinstating such orders, he allowed municipal leaders to decide whether to enact orders in their communities.
If the legislature keeps the order in place, Lamont acknowledged the state’s education department retains the ability reinstate a broad school masking requirement if deemed necessary.
Considering the pandemic has been unpredictable, Lamont said he was aware another COVID-19 variant could come along and drive up infections.
“We would reserve the right to make a change to keep you safe,” Lamont said. But, he said, such a move seems unlikely.
Lamont and his administration have defended the timeline for now seeking to end the school mask mandate given there are ample tools available for residents to combat COVID-19, including vaccines, and omicron, the dominant strain of the virus in Connecticut, tends to cause less severe infections.
As of Thursday, the omicron variant was found in about 99 percent of all positive COVID tests that were sent for genomic sequencing, according to the latest weekly report.
Officials said the state Department of Public Health plans to provide local school leaders with guidance on how to approach instituting districtwide mask mandates and how to handle COVID-19 cases in schools where masks are optional.
“You can certainly continue to mask if you decide in your community that’s what works best for you. However, if you chose not to, that is what we are allowing you to do by removing the statewide mandate,” said Dr. Manisha Juthani, commissioner of the state Department of Public Health.