FORT PIERCE, Florida – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday accused the Palm Beach County school district of being “anti-scientific” by imposing a new universal mask warrant for students.
All public school children are now required to wear facial coatings inside school buildings and on school district transportation without the option to opt out. The only exceptions are for students with certain medical conditions.
Speaking at a new monoclonal antibody treatment center in Fort Pierce on Monday, DeSantis said the school district is violating state law by refusing to give parents the final decision on whether their children wear masks to school. .
“I want parents to finally have calls with masks,” DeSantis said. “Ultimately, I think parents have the best understanding.”
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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis addresses Palm Beach County School Mask
DeSantis said school districts like Palm Beach County are “anti-science” for not recognizing the “immunity conferred by a previous infection,” referring to the notion that students previously infected with COVID-19 have a certain level of immunity to the virus.
“If a child became infected this summer, they don’t need to be in a mask, regardless of what they think of the mask,” DeSantis said. “That has immunity. And so if you don’t recognize this basic and clear scientific fact right now, that shows you that this is more political.”
The governor then accused the Palm Beach County school district of “not following science” by adopting a policy of “quarantining a healthy child who has already recovered from COVID in the past.”
“You’re not following science,” DeSantis said. “You’re doing things more in line with your agenda.”
However, this allegation seems incorrect when the school district policy is carefully analyzed.
According to the COVID-19 protocols of the Palm Beach County School District, students who have had a previous COVID-19 infection, that is, who have tested positive for the coronavirus during the previous 90 days and who currently have no symptoms required to stay home and do quarantine.
The same is true of asymptomatic and fully vaccinated children and two weeks have passed since their second dose in a two-dose series.
RELATED: Parents Protest Palm Beach County School District Facial Mask Warrant
On Monday, DeSantis stopped announcing possible punishments for the Palm Beach County School District for his extensive mask warrant.
Last week, the Florida Department of Education gave 48 districts to school districts in Broward and Alachua counties (which also require masks for students without exclusion provision) to comply with state law or cut salaries for members of the Broward and Alachua counties. school board.
Both districts stood firm and said they would not change their mask mandates.
The Biden Administration responded quickly and said the U.S. Department of Education is “ready to help any district that has implications for imposing CDV-recommended prevention strategies for the CDC that will protect the health and safety of students, educators and staff “.
The Palm Beach County School Board is scheduled to meet Wednesday afternoon to discuss whether the Palm Beach County School District would be willing to join other school districts across the state to legally challenge the order. the governor’s emergency regarding face-to-face coverage at school.
There have been 1,424 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the school district since the 2021/22 school year began on August 10, including 1,234 students and 190 employees.
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DeSantis made his remarks Monday at a new monoclonal antibody treatment center at the Havert L. Fenn Center, located at 2000 Virginia Avenue in Fort Pierce.
The site will be open every day seven days a week from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Up to 320 patients will be able to receive free treatments every day. Accessories are allowed, but you can also request an appointment by clicking here.
Monoclonal antibodies are laboratory proteins that help the immune system fight viruses. DeSantis said treatment is most effective for patients with COVID-19 if given when symptoms appear.