WILMINGTON, Del.— Delaware Gov. John Carney on Monday announced that he will sign an order terminating the COVID-19 state of emergency and the masking requirement in public and private K-12 schools and child care facilities effective at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, March 1.
The announcement is consistent with new masking guidance issued on Friday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Masking will not be required by the state of Delaware in K-12 schools, on school buses, or in child care facilities after 6 p.m. on Tuesday, March 1.
The Delaware Department of Education and the Division of Public Health have issued updated guidance to district and school leaders to aid response efforts following the expiration of the mask requirement.
Carney also announced that vaccine or testing requirements for educators and state employees will expire at 11:59 p.m. Monday, Feb. 28.
"Honestly I guess we were surprised by the announcement just by how quick it happened," said Stephanie Ingram, president of the Delaware State Education Association.
Indian River School District is expected to vote on mask wearing Monday night. Schools like Sussex Academy who decided to make masks optional are prepared for the change.
"I think it's the next step in returning to a sense of normalcy. I think it will raise morale with staff and students, it's the right thing to do. We've had testing on site every week and the last three weeks we've only had one positive case," said Sussex Academy Head of School, Eric Anderson.
The mask requirement in most state facilities will also be lifted starting on Wednesday, March 2. Additional guidance for state employees will be issued on Monday by the Department of Human Resources.
“There are a lot of reasons to be optimistic about where we’re headed,” said Carney. “Over the last month, COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have fallen dramatically, and we are clearly moving into a new phase of this pandemic. Today’s announcement is consistent with new guidance from the CDC. And it’s consistent with the latest thinking from Delaware’s experts at the Division of Public Health. Delawareans who want to continue wearing a mask - including children in our schools - should be supported and encouraged to do so, even as we move into this new phase. We’ll also continue to encourage all eligible Delawareans to get up to date on their COVID-19 vaccinations.”
Dr. John Fink with Bayhealth says the governor's move was not surprising, but said it's important to remember the virus does still impact some children more than others.
"We do know kids under 5 there is still no approved vaccine for them, we worry about kids with chronic illnesses and diseases, so we have to take that concern for those groups in our communities and really make sure we protect them as much as possible," said Dr. Fink.
On Tuesday, the state of emergency will be lifted. At the same time, a more narrow public health emergency order will be issued to replace a public health emergency order issued on July 12, 2021. This updated public health emergency order will allow hospitals and long-term care facilities continued flexibility to respond to cases of COVID-19.
"Our educators are professionals we know that they've been wearing masks and we know that they know what that means, and again hoping everyone makes the decisions to keeping themselves safe, our students safe, and our community safe," said Ingram, "Given the choice to wear a mask, or not to wear a mask I want people to stay kind when they think about the decisions people are making for themselves."
