‘Universal’ masking recommended in schools

Updated guidance follows CDC announcement

>> The Montgomery County Office of Public Health on Thursday announced revised 2021-22 school guidance for COVID-19 mitigation.

“The county now recommends universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students, and visitors to schools, regardless of vaccination status in alignment with the CDC,” the department said in a press release.

On Wednesday, Dr. Richard Lorraine, medical director for the Montgomery County Office of Public Health, acknowledged to MediaNews Group the fluidity of the situation more than 16 months after the first cases of COVID-19 were reported locally.

“It’s obviously a moving target and guidelines, and recommendations vary depending on what our underlying transmission rates are, certainly, and obviously the transmission rates seem to be going up at this point,” he said. “There’s concern about the delta variant being more contagious.

“Since the CDC at this point is recommending universal masking, which is a little different than the guidance we put out, we are going to modify the in-school recommendations for masking to be universal,” Lorraine said.

County health officials had issued recommendations on Tuesday for the upcoming school year. A day later, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced new guidelines.

Prior recommendations had included “four levels of guidance for masking and COVID-19 testing based on school district level of community transmission,” according to a county spokesperson.

The recommendations from the county’s public health office covered several areas including “promotion of COVID-19 vaccination,” social distancing and cleaning protocols.

“The health and safety of our students, teachers, and staff, and ensuring our kids get the instruction they need, are top priorities heading into the school year,” said Montgomery County Commissioners’ Chairwoman Dr. Val Arkoosh in a July 28 statement. Public health officials have been working over the summer in conjunction with the superintendents of the area’s 22 school districts to devise guidelines, the statement noted.

School district superintendents

in the county pointed to their individual health and safety plans as devised for their districts, acknowledging that masking guidelines may change.

“As of right now we’re following our board-approved June 24 health and safety plan for the start of the 2122 school year,” said Erin Crew, director of communications, marketing and media for Spring-Ford Area School District.

Spring-Ford Area School District’s health and safety plan emphasized in-person education five days a week.

“Throughout the pandemic, Norristown Area School District has prioritized the health and safety of our students, staff, families, and community as we have made decisions on models of instructional delivery for our comprehensive educational program,” said Norristown Area School District Superintendent Christopher Dormer in a statement. “We remain committed to returning to full, in-person teaching and learning as we open the 2021-22 school year.”

“We recognize that guidance will continue to evolve as the uncharted course of the pandemic continues, particularly as we closely watch the impact of the delta variant and eagerly await approval of a vaccine for individuals under the age of 12,” Dormer went on to say.

“Since day one we have relied on our local health department for the foundation of our health and safety plans and we will continue to do so,” said North Penn School District Superintendent Curtis Dietrich in a statement to MediaNews Group. “That being said, we are agile and flexible to make any changes as needed in the coming days, weeks and months to ensure the safety of our students and staff.” Currently, the district is calling for masking to be optional.

Wissahickon School District Superintendent James Crisfield said he’s awaiting further “guidance” from state and local agencies.

“We want to continually reassure them that we are looking at everything when we make these recommendations,” Lorraine said, referring to school communities. “It’s not just simply a reaction to COVID transmission.”

There were 129 cases of COVID-19 documented from July 14 to July 20 in Montgomery County, according to the county’s COVID-19 dashboard website, with 59,479 total COVID-19 cases and 1,333 deaths since March 7, 2020.

School leaders and the general public can view school district-level COVID-19 case data on the County’s COVID-19 data hub. To find this data, navigate to the “Incidence and Positivity” heading and select “District” under “COVID-19 Rates by School District/Municipality.” This section is updated weekly on Wednesdays.

Montgomery County health officials also released new masking guidance for the general public aligned with the CDC’s four levels of COVID-19 community transmission (low, moderate, substantial, and high). This provides Montco residents and businesses with masking recommendations for indoors and outdoors. It also has guidance for people who are immunocompromised or those with increased risk of disease. Currently, according to the CDC COVID-19 Integrated County View map, Montgomery County is in the moderate level of community transmission.

For all COVID-19 guidance, visit www.montcopa. org/COVID-19Guidance.