The American Academy of Pediatrics Recommends Masks for All Students

 

“The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommended that all children over the age of 2 wear masks when returning to school this year, regardless of vaccination status.

“The AAP, which said it’s important for children to return to in-person learning this year, recommends that school staff also wear masks. The AAP is calling the new guidance a ‘layered approach.’ ‘We need to prioritize getting children back into schools alongside their friends and their teachers — and we all play a role in making sure it happens safely,’ said Sonja O’Leary, chair of the AAP Council on School Health. ‘Combining layers of protection that include vaccinations, masking and clean hands hygiene will make in-person learning safe and possible for everyone.’

“The AAP said universal masking is necessary because much of the student population is not vaccinated, and it's hard for schools to determine who is as new variants emerge that might spread more easily among children. Children 12 and over are eligible for Covid-19 vaccinations in the U.S. And the FDA said last week that emergency authorization for vaccines for children under 12 could come in early to midwinter.

“Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and chief medical adviser to the president, said on CNN that the guidance makes sense. ‘When you have a degree of viral dynamics in the community, and you have a substantial proportion of the population that is unvaccinated, that you really want to go the extra step, the extra mile to make sure that there's not a lot of transmission, even breakthrough infections among vaccinated individuals,’ he said.

“‘I think that the American Academy of Pediatrics, you know, they're a thoughtful group, they analyze the situation and if they feel that that's the way to go, I think that's a reasonable thing to do,’ Fauci added. Universal masking will also protect students and staff from other respiratory illnesses that could keep kids out of school, the AAP said…” (by Elisha Fieldstadt, NBC News).