Mask Mandate Could Be Lifted In New York Schools

This week could be the final week that students in schools across New York State would have to wear masks while inside school buildings.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul who lifted the indoor mask requirement for businesses in New York State on February 9th said that the state would revisit the mask mandate for school when students returned from mid-winter break this week.

In what could be a positive sign, New York City schools announced that they will lift their mask mandate starting tomorrow. This could be a good sign that school across the state will soon have their mask mandate lifted by the state.

According to the New York Times, the decision for New York City schools to drop their mask mandate before an official ruling from the state had to do with a major decline in COVID-19 positive cases.

The decision comes as city Department of Education officials said that coronavirus cases among students and staff members had decreased by 99 percent since their early January peak, and that the in-school test positivity rate was under one percent

Governor Hochul is expected to meet with school officials, parents, teachers, and other members of the public to review COVID-19 numbers this week and see if there is an increase in positive cases at schools when students return from break.

Maryland recently lifted its statewide mandate for masks in school while Pennsylana it the mask mandate policy was up to each school district.

The decision to leave the school mask mandate across New York could come as early as Wednesday or Thursday of this week.