MPS 'mask optional' policy lasted 1 day
MILWAUKEE - Masks were optional for Milwaukee Public Schools students on Tuesday, April 19, but the relaxed rules were short-lived.
The superintendent said COVID data from Tuesday showed a spike. We won’t know until Thursday how long masks will stay on.
MPS officials made the announcement late Tuesday that masks would be required for all students and staff once again starting Wednesday morning.
"Everything we have done is to make sure that our students are in school every day," said Superintendent Keith Posley.
Posley said in the last three weeks, the district’s positivity rate for staff increased 47%. He said the district will evaluate data released Thursday to determine whether masks will be required for the next two weeks.
"We are constantly looking at the rate of infection, the positivity rates in the city and our own district dashboard," said Posley.
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The move reverses a mask-optional policy that was only in place for one day.
Posley said this Tuesday: "That is an option. You can go with your mask on or with your mask off. It’s totally an option."
The seven-day average of new cases has increased slightly for the last month and started topping 100 cases within the last week. Dr. Dan Shirley, UW Health’s medical director of infection prevention, says abandoning masks is the wrong move.
"When there are rates going up, obviously, now we know the importance of having kids in school," said Shirley. "If there are layers of protection and things we can do there, that’s worth considering."
Shirley fears those 100 cases could multiply and cause another surge. A side-by-side comparison shows traditional COVID testing is down while COVID cases are up. Samples taken from Milwaukee's wastewater, however, show a "major increase."
"I don’t think by itself the perfect measure yet but definitely a tool, along with a couple of other things, to give us a clue that cases are rising," said Shirley.
Posley says he hopes to avoid changing the policy on short notice again in the future.
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