SACRAMENTO COUNTY, Calif. — Masking will continue in schools, at least for now. That decision comes as the requirement for all other vaccinated individuals in the state ends Tuesday evening.
California’s Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly made the announcement Monday afternoon. He promised to reassess the data and conditions on Feb. 28 and consider future changes to statewide school masking.
As for what needs to happen between now and then for the mandate to be dropped, Ghaly said there’s no threshold. Ghaly said he's going to continue monitoring the data, and California will find out in two weeks if it was good enough.
"We don't plan to at this moment set a threshold above which or below which something happens," Ghaly said. "What I think is the real opportunity today is to explain to Californians where we are with childhood vaccinations, that we have a long way to go, and to work with families and communities to get that number up."
For some, like 17-year-old Max Bonilla, it feels like a lifetime ago when schools first announced they were closing for a few weeks in 2020.
“I can just remember that moment. Everybody was excited. Everybody was happy," he said, "But I told them, 'Hey, don't get too excited. You know, this could be for longer.'”
For him, those weeks turned into years. He graduated high school virtually, and his American River College classes are now virtual. He said he cares about taking COVID precautions, but he understands why parents are frustrated with the way the state is handling it.
"They've seen pictures, obviously at the NFC championship with Governor Newsom and Eric Garcetti," he said. "And that's why they believe in mask choice."
Reporters asked Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly about the anticipated reaction from parents on this announcement following Super Bowl weekend.
“I know, and hear, and listen to the frustration from many California parents...," he said. "Today, a change isn't being made, but in two weeks, confirming that the data continues to be where it is, taking the time to prepare and work with the school community and communities at large, that we anticipate making the change at that point."
He ran through stats that show while California is home to 12% of students in the entire country, the state only had 1% of school closures.
"You can see that, throughout this the nation, there are pockets where many many schools have closed, and that is directly related to how we have managed and supported the schools through two really large surges this year," Ghaly said.
Reporters also asked Ghaly several times about the influence behind the decision and whether teachers unions, labor unions or others played a role. He said it’s just him looking at the data.
"The decision that I'm sharing with you today is based on the information and the data that we see. We've always said that schools are an important area to protect and support," he said.
But last week in a press conference, Newsom said "they," as in schools and teachers asked him for more time. Today, the California Teacher's Association (CTA) said that they support the decision.
"We support the administration’s decision to pause and gather more information to make a science-based decision on school masking that responds to this moment in the pandemic and helps the state transition with an eye on equity. We will continue to assess state and local conditions over the next two weeks, just as local school districts and communities assess their own needs," said Toby Boyd, president of the CTA.
The California Republican Party sent a statement saying "with hundreds of pictures of celebrities and lawmakers ignoring the rules at sporting events, every Californian should be enraged that Democrats change the rules for their friends yet force children to continue to suffer.”
WATCH ALSO:
