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Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser said Monday that the city will lift its mask requirements for many public venues, including bars, restaurants and schools – but it will still mandate masks for schoolchildren.
“Because of that diligence that we have seen since the height of omicron wave entered the district in December, cases have dropped more than 90% and there has been a 95% reduction in hospitalizations,” Bowser said. “We are in a much better place now.”
VIRAL VIDEO SHOWS CHILDREN REJOICING AFTER LEARNING THEY NO LONGER NEED TO MASK UP AT SCHOOL
Bowser did not say that the mask mandate in the city would be fully lifted, only that they will be “dialed back.” The places where people will no longer have to wear masks will be “[r]estaurants and bars,” “[s]ports and entertainment venues,” supermarkets, pharmacies, retail businesses, private offices, D.C. government offices and “[h]ouses of worship.”
But the district will still require masks at “schools, childcare facilities and libraries,” as well as healthcare facilities, jails, and on public transit. Bowser was asked about when the district might lift mask mandates in schools, which have been harshly criticized by parents as potentially harming the development of children, especially younger ones.
A child wearing a face mask arrives at school in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., January 5, 2022. Washington, D.C., is lifting its mask mandate for bars, concerts and restaurants, but not for schools.
( REUTERS/Carlo Allegri)
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“That’s a good question,” she said. “We continue to work with our school communities over what they think it will take to keep kids safe and in school. We thought that our last group of little ones would have access to the vaccine in February. It turns out it’s going to be sometime later. So I don’t think that we’re going to have a decision about schools sometime soon.”
The city is also lifting its vaccine requirement for indoor venues starting on Tuesday.
