All CA Students Must Wear Masks This Fall: SURVEY

CALIFORNIA — California will require K-12 students to wear masks indoors when they return to school in the fall, though state public health officials do not recommend physical distancing in classrooms.

The California Department of Public Health made the announcement hours after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued its own guidance on safety measures for K-12 schools. The CDC said students' return to in-person instruction is a priority, that fully vaccinated people need not wear masks indoors but that students should maintain 3 feet of physical distancing in classrooms.

"When it is not possible to maintain a physical distance of at least 3 feet, such as when schools cannot fully re-open while maintaining these distances, it is especially important to layer multiple other prevention strategies, such as indoor masking," the CDC said.

Physical distancing would hinder Golden State schools' ability to reopen, the public health department said in a statement. Many schools don't have the space to do so, so the state decided to require masks indoors, said Dr. Mark Ghaly, secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency, in a statement.

“Masking is a simple and effective intervention that does not interfere with offering full in-person instruction," he said. "At the outset of the new year, students should be able to walk into school without worrying about whether they will feel different or singled out for being vaccinated or unvaccinated — treating all kids the same will support a calm and supportive school environment.”

California schools will have access to free COVID-19 testing, according to the public health department.

The CDC also recommended safety measures in K-12 schools such as ventilation, hand-washing and respiratory etiquette, staying home if sick and cleaning and disinfecting.