Mask mandate in Alachua County schools ends as new law starts - Gainesville Sun
Masks are no longer required for students in Alachua County Public Schools as a new state law took effect this week that blocks local mask and vaccination against COVID-19 is now available for children as young as kindergarteners.
Thursday, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill that blocks school districts from implementing mask mandates. The new law will keep masking optional for families without having to sign a parental opt-out form or having to seek approval from medical professionals.
However, if parents or students choose to wear a mask in school then they may do so.
The bill also allows for children who have been exposed to COVID-19 but are asymptomatic to return to school at the parents discretion.
"Quarantining is strongly recommended for unvaccinated people who have contact with a positive COVID case, and is still required for anyone with symptoms. We encourage students and families to continue to take precautions to prevent the spread of COVID in our schools, homes and community," said Jackie Johnson, spokeswoman for Alachua County Public Schools, in an email.
COVID-19 cases in Alachua County schools have remained low in recent weeks. According to the districts' dashboard, in the past 14 days 16 students and two staff members have tested positive for the virus. Thursday there were five positive COVID-19 cases reported and 52 students in quarantine.
Alachua school district administrators are disappointed to lose authority over mitigating health risks in local schools, Johnson said. The district was one of several across Florida that had adopted local mask mandates despite an emergency order by state officials that forbade them, creating legal challenges.
"We feel it is very short sighted. If you take a look at what's happening in other parts of the country, and in other parts of the world, it's clear that COVID is not over. Yet essentially what the state has done is tied our hands in the face of a future surge," Johnson said.
Masking is still required for Alachua County Public school employees for the next six school days.
"We hope we bought ourselves enough time with the steps that we did take. Obviously our cases are very low. Now our quarantines are very low but as we've seen, that can change. So we hope that doesn't come back to bite state leaders and more importantly, bite the citizens of the state of Florida," Johnson said.
Vaccinations coming to local schools
Children ages 5-11 can now receive the Pfizer vaccine for COVID-19. The federal Food and Drug Administration authorized use for the vaccine for younger children on Oct. 29 and the Centers for Disease for Control and Prevention approved it for emergency use on Nov. 2.
So far, pharmacies in Alachua County such as CVS and Walgreens, along with local pediatricians, have begun vaccinating children.
On Wednesday the UF Health in partnership with the Florida Department of Health in Alachua County held a vaccination clinic at the University of Florida's Phillips Center for Performing Arts garage.
And beginning Dec. 7 parents can also expect vaccination clinics to be all the elementary schools and middle schools.
"Those clinics will be available not just for the 5- to 11-year-olds, but the health department will also have vaccines available at those events for older students in the middle schools and even for employees who would like to get a vaccine," Johnson said.
The district will continue to let the district know about opportunities to get there younger children vaccinated. Parents can check where available clinics will be on the Alachua County Public Schools COVID-19 vaccination page.
source: https://www.gainesville.com/story/news/education/2021/11/19/mask-mandate-alachua-county-schools-ends-new-law-starts/8680121002/
Your content is great. However, if any of the content contained herein violates any rights of yours, including those of copyright, please contact us immediately by e-mail at media[@]kissrpr.com.