Joplin-area physicians call for schools to require universal masking

Aug. 18—More than 100 physicians representing both Joplin hospitals sent a letter to area school boards Tuesday night urging them to consider requiring "a policy of universal masking for the upcoming school year."

"We agree with the guidance from the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics that in-person learning is preferable to virtual options for schooling and feel it is imperative to achieve a full year of in-person education. However, COVID-19-related outbreaks will result in school closures and quarantines, disrupting in-person education."

Later, the letter states: "To keep our kids in school and healthy, universal masking for Pre-K through grade 12 must be required for all students, teachers, staff and visitors on the school campus no matter vaccination status. This is consistent with both the most recent updated CDC guidance and guidance from the AAP."

The letter was signed by physicians from Freeman Health System, Mercy Hospital Joplin, KCU, and Via Christi in Pittsburg, Kansas. It went to school board members in Joplin, Webb City, Carl Junction, Carthage, Neosho, Seneca, McDonald County, East Newton, and Galena, Kansas. It also went to the Joplin Area Catholic Schools system, College Heights Christian School and Thomas Jefferson Independent Day School.

The letter begins by thanking board members and praising them for their efforts keeping COVID-19 numbers low last year among students and staff.

It then notes the threat this fall, particularly from the delta variant.

"We do not truly know the long-term effects from COVID-19, especially the Delta variant. With COVID-19 cases last year, we saw children with prolonged issues that can present weeks to months after initial infection, including heart, lung, kidney, blood vessel damage and death."

It also notes that a recent article in The Lancet, a British medical journal, found that four in 100 children hospitalized with COVID-19 may develop long-term neurological complications at a much higher rate than adults.

"We currently know that the Delta variant is twice more contagious than the original COVID-19 strain and is now dominant in our community. Our local and regional hospitals have been inundated with COVID-19 patients, including children. Currently, our ICU beds in the Joplin area are at greater than 90% occupancy, mostly of unvaccinated COVID-19 patients."

The letter also noted that Monday, 11 of the 52 new cases in Jasper County were in children.

"This is a strikingly high percentage of a preventable disease," the letter states.

It also noted the low vaccination rates in Jasper County — 29.8% of the population has initiated vaccination — and among Missouri children ages 12-17 — 35.5% — before noting the numbers are "far below" the numbers needed for herd immunity in the population, which is 70%-80%.

"Furthermore, there are no pediatric ICU beds in Joplin for children younger than 18; children will need to be airlifted to Kansas City or Springfield for care.

"There are two ways to protect from COVID-19 infection: Masks and vaccination. Currently, vaccination is only approved for children over 12 years of age. This leaves our youngest without a way to protect themselves even if they are willing to receive the vaccine. Masks work to reduce the spread of disease. Masks are a simple and cheap, lifesaving protective equipment. Cloth masks have been shown to decrease transmission of respiratory droplets, the main way COVID-19 is transmitted, by 50-70%."

It also noted there is no strong evidence that masks harm adults or children either psychologically or physically.

"With such a simple, cheap, safe and effective way to protect our children, why would we not choose to have universal masking?"

The letter notes that the Marion, Arkansas, school district has more than 1,400 students in quarantine after 140 positive cases. Superintendent Glen Fenter was quoted in the letter, "If our students had been under the same mask mandate that we administered last year, instead of 730 people quarantined. We would have had 42."

In Florida, Brevard Public Schools have 470 COVID-19 cases and 1,060 students and faculty in quarantine after only one week of school unmasked.

The letter then notes that some area schools are requiring masking — Springfield, and Fayetteville, Arkansas, as well Joplin Area Catholic Schools.

The physicians recommend:

—"Universal masking for all indoor activities. Exemptions due to underlying medical conditions should be permitted with authorization from a licensed health care professional. Mask policies are enforced according to the code of conduct and honor code."

—"Also, current CDC guidelines state that if someone is in direct contact (less than six feet for more than 15 minutes and are unvaccinated) they should quarantine at home and may be released with a negative COVID test on day seven. This is contrary to the guidelines established by the Joplin School District, which allow the exposed student to return to school wearing a mask if they exhibit no symptoms, or five days later with a negative test without wearing a mask. We strongly urge you to follow CDC guidelines in this regard."

The letter urges boards to look at data, science and the advice of health care profession, and "not succumb to the politicization and therefore, polarization that has occurred since COVID-19 began.

"We understand that personal choice matters, but the boards have other policies that go against it to save lives including a 'nut-free' policy that occurs at many schools. How is this any different?"

The letter ends by noting that without universal masking, school outbreaks "are inevitable due to COVID-19. Both the staff and students will suffer if this occurs, and parents will have an added burden of teaching their kids in a virtual environment. After-school activities, including sports, will suffer as well. This all could be avoided with a universal masking policy. Why not protect our kids to the fullest?"

Among those physicians who signed the letter were Eden Esguerra, an infectious disease specialist at Mercy Hospital Joplin, who was one of the first physicians in Joplin to receive the vaccine; Beth Garrett, a Freeman pediatrician; Robert McNab, director of the COVID-19 unit at Freeman; and Tracy Godfrey, president of Mercy Clinic Joplin.