As Schools Reopen, Child COVID-19 Cases Rise

Child COVID-19 cases have been increasing after a notable decline earlier in the summer, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. The organization highlighted a five-fold increase over the past month, which saw cases rising from about 38,000 cases in the week ending July 22 to nearly 204,000 in the week ending Aug. 26, when children made up 22.4% of all reported cases. Burbio, a data service monitoring the reopening trends of K-12 school districts, found that over 1,000 schools across 35 states have closed due to a rising number of COVID-19 cases since the beginning of the school year.

Despite concerns regarding these numbers and the contagious Delta variant, mask mandates in schools have persistently generated polarizing opinions in school board meetings and state legislatures across the country. According to a Gallup poll, 48% of K-12 parents believe that all students should be required to wear masks at school regardless of their vaccination status. There are currently 10 states restricting school mask mandates; five are being investigated by the U.S. Department of Education for “putting politics over the health and education of the students they took an oath to serve.”