Philadelphia to require masks in schools after winter break

Democrat-run Philadelphia has announced a mask mandate in public schools next month to limit the spread of viruses during festive mixing.

The city’s school district announced yesterday it will require all K-12 students to wear masks in classrooms and hallways from January 3 to 13 – the first ten days after school returns from winter break.

Officials nationwide fear that the first normal Christmas since the pandemic took off more than two years ago will fuel the spread of Covid, flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which are already overwhelming hospitals across the US.

It comes after mask recommendations were implemented in New York City, Los Angeles and Washington state recently- but officials stopped short of implementing mandates.

America mostly axed masks in late spring after the Omicron surge was under control and studies increasingly showed face coverings have little impact on transmission. 

There is growing evidence that masks hindered children’s social development and education.

Flu cases reached a seasonal high in Philadelphia during the week ending on December 3. More than 1,600 cases were recorded, far outpacing the usual peaks of previous flu seasons

While RSV cases are still unseasonably high in Philadelphia, despite cases being on a significant decline after peaking in early November 

‘In an effort to be proactive in supporting healthy environments and maintaining in-person learning following students and staff returning from winter break, the District will implement mandatory masking,’ officials wrote in a news release. 

The City of Brotherly Love was one of the final places in America to still require masks in schools earlier this year – with mandates in place as recently as May. 

Covid has receded in the city of 1.5million residents, though. It is recording 220 new cases each day – only 14 per every 100,000 members of the population.

This is a far fall from the 655 cases per day the city was recording in mid-December 2021. 

The city is also logging just one death caused by the virus daily.

Cases of RSV are also declining after the city suffered a massive surge of the annual bug in early November.

The city confirmed around 240 cases of the virus during the week ending on December 3, the most recently available data.

While this is still a significantly higher figure than a usual RSV season – where cases will peak at around 200 per week around the new year – it is a far fall from the 650 cases recorded during the week ending November 5. 

Flu cases in Philadelphia are rocketing, though. In its most recent weekly report, the city logged 1,600 confirmed infections.

In previous years, flu season would peak at around 300 cases per week.

It is unclear whether masks in a school environment actually help combat spread of viruses.

A Spanish study of over 600,000 children published earlier this year found that on average schools without mask mandates had higher rates of Covid transmission than those that did.

Other studies, including a Stanford University study from April of last year, found that masks had little impact on Covid transmission in schools.

Philadelphia is not the first city to flirt with bringing back masks as the three viruses circulate this winter.

Last week, Dr Ashwin Vasan, the New York City Health Department commissioner, encouraged New Yorkers to wear face coverings in indoor public places.

Cases of the flu are starting to stagnate after rapidly rising in recent months. America recorded 35,704 new flu infections during the week that ended December 3, nearly matching the figure from a week earlier

RSV is starting to slow down, with 14,348 cases recorded during the week that ended November 26, and 6,253 cases the week that ended December 3. Experts say that while RSV is still a danger, is is no longer at its peak and cases will continue to decline in the near future

Also citing the recent surges in RSV and flu cases, a dozen county-level officials in Washington state also began to urge residents to wear face masks indoors.

Over the weekend, Los Angeles County Health Director Dr Barbara Ferrer announced an indoor mask recommendation over the weekend.

‘If you’re going to an event such as a concert or a large Christmas party, there is now a higher likelihood that one or more persons at the event is infected,’ she said during a news briefing.

‘They could unknowingly infect you, and you in turn could unknowingly infect your friends, your co-workers or your family.’

The CDC has even cranked up its rhetoric on masks in recent weeks, saying it ‘encouraged’ people to wear ‘high-quality, well-fitting’ masks to prevent seasonal bugs – not just Covid.

Nationwide, America recorded 35,704 confirmed cases of the flu during the week that ended December 3.

This is a slight decrease from the 35,993 recorded a week earlier – the first time weekly cases have declined since the start of flu season.

The agency also reports that 25 percent of flu tests are returning positive – matching the total from the week before.

Experts have warned this is the worst flu season the nation has faced since the 2009 Swine Flu pandemic over a decade ago. 

Federal officials recorded 6,253 RSV cases during the week ending December 3. During the week ending November 26, 14,348 cases were recorded.

Dr Ashish Jha, the White House Covid Response Coordinator, said during a briefing today that RSV is ‘no doubt’ starting to decline.

These surges have been blamed on an ‘immunity gap’ thought to have built up during the pandemic when Covid restrictions shut out seasonal bugs.

Experts say it is likely these types of mask advisories and other pandemic-related orders likely played a role in this recent surge of viral illnesses. 

These orders come as the flu and RSV continue their rampant spread across the US, but some are hopeful they will soon run out of steam.