Let’s keep Anchorage’s students safe. The science supports masks in schools.

Sometimes the best path is not the easiest. With school resuming in Anchorage, it is time to focus on the health and safety of our children and school personnel by protecting them from COVID-19. The Alaska Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics advocates for the universal masking policy implemented by the Anchorage School District. This and other COVID policies were carefully crafted by ASD using guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and the American Academy of Pediatrics. The protocols suggested are derived from fact-based science and will allow our schools to remain open and for kids to continue to learn.

Current research shows that children over the age of 2 can safely wear face masks. There is robust science to support the use of masking to combat virus transmission. Use of masks will help prevent school shutdowns and classroom quarantines. When a child tests positive, their classmates and teacher will not have to leave school if they were properly masked. In addition, kids in classrooms means parents can remain at work. Strong school policy leads to positive learning and helps to maintain a strong local economy.

The current spread of the delta variant in Anchorage requires strong mitigation techniques. Students 12 and older are eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, but many have not yet had a chance to be immunized. Younger children cannot yet be vaccinated and depend on adults and older classmates to protect them by reducing community spread. This is another reason that masking is imperative to keeping schools safe. Unvaccinated individuals are at a higher risk of contracting the more contagious delta variant. Higher virus numbers are already stretching our health care capacity. Working together, we can keep numbers low and protect our health infrastructure.

There has been a lot of commentary about mask exemptions. Current science does not support the majority of current mask exemption requests. Children with asthma, for example, can wear face masks. Masks made from breathable fabrics do not block oxygen or trap carbon dioxide. The journal that initially published these false claims has retracted the study. If you have concerns about mask wearing, contact your trusted pediatrician, who can listen to your concerns and provide valid resources to help you make the right decisions for your family.

Layered together, masking — along with vaccination, physical distancing, hand hygiene and proper ventilation — helps make our schools safe for our students. We all love our children. Let’s work together as a community to keep our students and educators safe and in the classroom. If you are not sure what to believe about COVID mitigation, call you child’s pediatrician. They will be happy to help you talk about how to protect your family and extended family during these uncertain times.

Anna Ogena, M.D., Kevin Kollins, M.D., Jody Butto, M.D., and Lily Lou, M.D., are members of the Executive Committee of the Alaska Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Dale Knutsen is the chapter’s Executive Director.

The views expressed here are the writer’s and are not necessarily endorsed by the Anchorage Daily News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)adn.com. Send submissions shorter than 200 words to letters@adn.com or click here to submit via any web browser. Read our full guidelines for letters and commentaries here.