Schools must send home students who refuse to wear a mask, state says

In guidance issued Monday, the California Department of Public Health said that schools “must exclude students from campus” who don’t wear a mask indoors and refuse to wear one that the school provides.

The wording amplifies on the masking requirement that the public health department announced on Friday. The requirement does not apply to students who are exempt from wearing a face covering, under state guidelines. These include children under 2, students with medical or mental health conditions or are hearing impaired or communicating with a hearing impaired person. For students who are excluded for not wearing a mask, schools must provide alternative educational opportunities, the state said.

California’s position differs from the guidance issued Friday by the federal Centers for Disease Control, which said only unvaccinated students and staff would be mandated to wear masks. However, the CDC said states do have the discretion to impose additional protections, as conditions warrant.

California’s mask mandate also applies to adults indoors at schools.

The new guidance explains the reasons for its ruling on masks. Masking, it said, is one of the most effective measures to control the spread of Covid-19 by both aerosols and droplets. It’s vital in schools that cannot maintain the recommended 3-foot physical distancing between individuals and serves as a precaution against the spread of more transmissible variants like the Delta variant and a protection when it’s difficult to identify those who are not vaccinated.

In a statement cited by the California School Boards Association, Ben Chida, the chief deputy cabinet secretary for Gov. Gavin Newsom, acknowledged that the mask requirement may embroil school district leaders in disputes.

“We think that easily implemented and effective measures like masking are a far better option than other, harder-to-implement options,” he said. “In terms of the cultural and political disputes that arise, part of what we’re trying to do is absorb as much of the impact as possible at the state level so that it’s not a local fight.”