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New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced that beginning on Wednesday, March 2, the mask mandate in schools would expire, citing recent improvement in COVID-19 numbers.
According to Hochul, she and her administration made the decision “based on the analysis of several key COVID-19 data trends and after consulting with health and education experts, as well as parents, teachers and school administrators.”
The move also coincides with recent changes to federal guidelines by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
“With more New Yorkers getting vaccinated, and the steady decline over the past several weeks in cases and hospitalizations from Omicron, we are now entering a new phase of the pandemic. Because New Yorkers have stepped up, we can confidently remove the statewide mask requirement in our schools," Hochul said in her announcement.
"This is a huge step forward for our kids and communities and I am grateful to the students, educators, and parents for their dedication to keeping us all safe—we've reached this milestone because of your hard work."
Before lifting the mask mandate, officials made note that children were sent home from midwinter break with 4.8 million COVID-19 tests, with an additional 4.8 million tests being sent out this week upon their return to class.
The number of children testing positive for COVID-19 has declined to levels not seen since the return from summer break. There were 229 new cases reported among children according to the latest update from the Department of Health, compared to the seven-day average of 832 daily cases at the beginning of the year.
Pediatric hospitalizations have also declined by nearly 80 percent since the peak of the Omicron variant in mid-January.
“Thanks to the hard work of New Yorkers, today we are able to lift the statewide mask requirement for schools,” state(the governor) said, we will remain vigilant as New York moves forward, and our team at the Department of Health will continue to monitor the data and advance early warning monitoring systems like wastewater surveillance.
“We continue to urge all New Yorkers to get vaccinated and get boosted, and we will work with our partners in education statewide to ensure our schools, teachers, and students have the support they need to keep our classrooms healthy and safe."
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