Saturday, Jul. 24, 2021
Does CDC guidance lack studies or data showing student masking reduces COVID-19 infections?
The Centers for Disease Control website is peppered with references to studies that show mask use by students is associated with lower COVID-19 infection rates, contrary to a claim in a social media post.
A study in North Carolina looked at 11 school districts that adhered to multiple prevention strategies, including universal mask use. It reported low school-related transmission and "breaches in mask use likely explained the few instances of in-school spread of SARS-CoV-2," according to the CDC.
A similar study of elementary schools in Utah with high student mask use found low school-related transmission.
And a Florida study found higher infection rates in districts with no mask requirement. That study said: "Success in preventing the introduction of SARS-CoV-2 into schools depends upon controlling community transmission and adhering to mitigation measures in schools, particularly masking, physical distancing, testing, and increasing room air ventilation."
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- Centers for Disease Control Guidance for COVID-19 Prevention in K-12 Schools
- Centers for Disease Control Science Brief: Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in K-12 Schools and Early Care and Education Programs – Updated
- American Academy of Pediatrics Incidence and Secondary Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 Infections in Schools
- Centers for Disease Control Low SARS-CoV-2 Transmission in Elementary Schools — Salt Lake County, Utah, December 3, 2020–January 31, 2021
- Centers for Disease Control COVID-19 in Primary and Secondary School Settings During the First Semester of School Reopening — Florida, August–December 2020
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