In reversal, Pennsylvania governor says masks now required for K-12 students and child care centers
Reversing course Tuesday, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced a mask mandate in the state for all schools and licensed child care centers. The new requirement will take effect on Tuesday, September 7, the day after Labor Day, CBS Philly reported.
It requires students, teachers and staff to wear masks when inside school buildings.
This is something the Wolf administration wanted to avoid, but the skyrocketing number of COVID-19 cases in Pennsylvania prompted the governor to take action.
"We have to act now to protect our students and our teachers, we need to put politics aside, we need to get back to what matters, keeping students safe and keeping students in the classroom," Wolf said.
In announcing the mask mandate, Wolf said it was a necessary reaction to the increasing number of coronavirus cases driven by the Delta variant, with Pennsylvania now averaging more than 3,200 new cases daily.
Effective September 7, masks will be required in schools and early learning and childcare programs in Pennsylvania.
— Governor Tom Wolf (@GovernorTomWolf) August 31, 2021
This will keep our students safer and in the classroom, where we all want them to be.
The new mandate is being officially issued by acting Health Secretary Alison Beam.
"The number of cases among Pennsylvania kids 0-17 rose by 277% between July and August," Beam said. "That's nearly a 300% jump in six weeks in Pennsylvania, and remember half of those kids are not old enough to get vaccinated."
Less than a month ago, Wolf ruled out a statewide mask mandate for schools, hoping local school districts would use their judgment, but there hasn't been unified support and protests have erupted among people opposed to mask requirements.
"Doing nothing right now to stop COVID that's just not an option. Doing nothing is going to mean more sick kids, mean more days out of school, more grief, and more problems for our economy," Wolf said.
While acknowledging some opponents, the governor presented a long list of organizations supporting the school mask mandate, including teachers' unions and medical groups.
The mandate will not apply to student-athletes while they're playing.
School mask mandates are already in place in neighboring New Jersey, Delaware and the city of Philadelphia.