St. Clair County Health Dept. says mask mandate needed in schools as COVID-19 surge rises
Editor's note: The Port Huron Schools mandate is set until Dec. 17. The date has been corrected.
St. Clair County's medical health official issued an advisory to local school districts Monday encouraging universal masking and other mitigating measures be put in place if in-person learning is to continue until winter break.
And at least one school district announced it is implementing a mask mandate.
Keely Baribeau, Port Huron Schools' director of community relations and marketing, said a mask mandate is required regardless of vaccination status in all schools and offices starting Tuesday. The mandate will continue until at least Dec. 17.
"We continue to have a strong relationship with the SCC Health Department but this was an internal decision based on our district needs and not those of the entire county," Port Huron Superintendent Theo Kerhoulas said in an email.
"The team and I will always make time to listen to concerns from our families. I believe most people will understand how incredibly hard the teachers and staff have worked to get us to this point," he said. "We now need some time requiring masks while our numbers are this high to keep kids in school learning face-to-face. I will ask that concerns be addressed to my office and not directly at the school level."
Health department officials were not aware what other districts have planned as of Monday afternoon.
"All parameters have been increasing for several weeks. All hospital systems and emergency medical services are reporting high volume and difficulty providing services and transfers, although all systems remain functional and open at this time. Urgent and immediate actions are needed to mitigate the impact of this virus to avoid virtual learning in your school districts," the notice to school officials from medical health officer Annette Mercatante states.
The letter said districts should implement universal masking for all students and staff, eliminate all congregate gatherings including cafeteria eating, increase ventilation and reduce class sizes wherever possible. It also advised anyone who is sick should remain home until COVID-19 infection have been ruled out or 10 days has passed from onset of symptoms.
"We only have a handful of tools we know can reduce the burden of viral transmission and these tools must be used immediately if we hope to have any effect," Mercatante said in the notice. "Failure to use these tools will likely create increased transmission and lead to further illnesses and potential loss of life. Your moral and legal responsibility to provide a safe environment to students is clearly contingent on your decisions at this time."
The public health urgent advisory stated the county is experiencing a critical amount of COVID-19 illnesses and viral transmission, with a more than 21% test positivity rate.
According to the county health department, there were 900 people hospitalized for COVID-19 Monday. The county has reported a total of 26,195 total cases since the start of the pandemic, including 529 deaths. COVID-19 patients occupied 22.74% of inpatient beds as of Monday.
This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: St. Clair County Health Dept. says mask mandate needed in schools as COVID-19 surge rises
