The Mayor of Washington D.C. Muriel Bowser said in a statement Monday that the capital would lift its mask mandates in all areas including eating venues, stores, bars, but not schools.
The lift comes following and likely as a result of new studies that show cloth face coverings do little to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Health experts have begun warning the public to stop wearing cloth masks according to CBS 42.
CBS 42 reported A recent study by researchers at the Mayo Clinic as well as in India found that in villages where cloth masks were worn infections were only reduced by only 5%. That’s one of the reasons why the Mayo Clinic is now asking everyone to wear a surgical or N95 mask.
This definitely complicates things when mandating that the entire population of a city wear masks while in public areas. But apparently, no complication is too much when it comes to making sure that children have to wear masks in school.
The masks will continue to be mandated at schools, libraries, and child care facilities despite having been lifted virtually everywhere else.
Not only are children at incredibly low risk for serious side effects from COVID-19, but studies also show that school might be an unlikely place to spread the virus as well. This fact was admitted even by outlets like The New York Times, an incredibly liberal site.
One early article from the times was labeled “Schoolchildren Seem Unlikely to Fuel Coronavirus Surges, Scientists Say”. Another from the Washington Post is headlined “Schools are not spreading covid-19. This new data makes the case”.
With this information paired with studies that show the low effectiveness of cloth masks, there seems to be little legitimate reason to continue muzzling the American youth.