CDC reverses masking guidance, recommends students and teachers wear face coverings even if vaccinated

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revised its guidance on wearing masks Tuesday and recommended that K-12 students and teachers wear them even if they are vaccinated.

That guidance comes as the COVID-19 delta variant is spreading quickly, especially in areas of the country where vaccination rates are low.

None of the vaccines are authorized for children under 12, and eligible teens have shown low rates of vaccination.

Both Floyd County Schools and Rome City Schools have said masks will be optional when classes resume on Aug. 5.

However, Rome Superintendent Lou Byars said late Tuesday that the school board will have a called meeting at 7:30 a.m. Thursday, during a previously scheduled back to school event for teachers at Barron Stadium. Board members will discuss the new guidance and announce their decision.

The new guidance also states that even vaccinated people should wear a mask in public indoor settings in states with “substantial and high transmission.”

The American Academy of Pediatrics has already weighed in and recommended that students, regardless of vaccination status, should wear face coverings in the classroom to help prevent transmission.

While children are much less likely to be hospitalized or die from the disease, public health officials said the rapid spread of COVID-19 among unvaccinated children could lead to infections in more vulnerable populations or the creation of new, harmful variants.

Both local school systems have held teacher and staff vaccination days.

On Friday, Floyd County Schools is making the Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines available for their staff and the community from 1 to 3 p.m. at the central office, 600 Riverside Parkway.

Rome City Schools will also be offering free vaccinations, on Aug. 2 during meet the teacher events at each of the schools.

Floyd Medical Center is providing the vaccination services for each of the school systems.

Floyd County has shown an increase in new COVID-19 cases since the beginning of July that public health officials have attributed to the delta variant. There have been 325 new COVID-19 cases in Rome and Floyd County in the past two weeks, according to the Georgia Department of Public Health.

That’s a substantial increase from declining and low infection rates since April.

At this point those increased infections have resulted in only a slight bump in hospitalizations. The Floyd County Emergency Management Agency reported that there were 13 COVID-19 positive patients in Floyd Medical Center and 6 in Redmond Regional Medical Center on Tuesday. Two additional patients are suspected of having the virus but are not yet confirmed.

While hospitalization numbers have increased in the past two weeks, they are still low compared to the 120plus COVID-19 patients being treated in local hospitals in December 2020.