K-12 masking is urged for Milwaukee County.
With the next school year just around the corner, Milwaukee County public health officials on Thursday urged school boards to institute universal mask-wearing requirements for teachers, staff, students and visitors.
The recommendation applies regardless of vaccination status and comes as the county has seen a rise in COVID-19 cases among children since the beginning of July.
The state and county more broadly are also seeing cases rise.
The officials raised concerns about the delta variant.
“The delta variant is highly transmissible and adding another layer of protection on top of vaccination is needed to stop the spread,” said the statement issued by 10 health officials representing all the communities in the county.
Children under 12 years old are not yet eligible to be vaccinated against the coronavirus.
The recommendation also follows recent guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other entities, according to a statement.
But in a letter Thursday, the Milwaukee Public Schools teachers union called on the city’s Health Department to do more. It raised concerns about the stalled vaccination rate, with lower rates in economically struggling areas of the city, and the “extreme transmission“category the city has entered.
MTEA Executive Director Ben Ward and President Amy Mizialko wrote that they were concerned steps being taken by Milwaukee Public Schools would not be enough to protect students and staff from variants.
“MTEA calls on the Milwaukee Health Department to act quickly to create new guidance and enact requirements for all Milwaukee schools,” they wrote.
They called for masking, social distancing, improved ventilation, enforceable metrics for going to remote instruction to contain outbreaks, and more.
Milwaukee Public Schools has consistently required masks indoors for all staff and students.
Shorewood and Whitefish Bay school districts have also said they would require masks for all students, staff and visitors inside, regardless of vaccination status.
Health officials who supported universal masking in schools were:
Heather Puente, Cudahy Health Department
Lauren Gottlieb, Franklin Health Department
Darren Rausch, Greenfield
Health Department
Kirsten Johnson, Milwaukee
Health Department
Darcy DuBois, Oak Creek Health Department
Laura Stephens, Wauwatosa
Health Department
Susan Shepeard, Village of Greendale and Hales Corners health departments
Kathleen Platt, North Shore Health Department (Bayside, Brown Deer, Fox Point, Glendale, River Hills, Shorewood, and Whitefish Bay)
Jackie Ove, South Milwaukee/St. Francis Health Department
Robert Leischow, West Allis/ West Milwaukee Health Department