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1A growing number of U.S. school systems are removing mask requirements for students.
2But some public health experts and parents are concerned that it is too soon to lift the rules.
3In Florida, the head of a school system recently announced she would agree to remove a mask requirement that had been in place since September.
4The decision came after a long, angry fight over mask requirements.
5But the school board chair in Santa Rosa County, Wei Ueberschaer, said she believed the requirement should remain until the end of the school year.
6Parents shouted insults at her.
7"Communist! Democrat!," they said.
8Moments later, the school board voted to end the mask requirement for all children.
9The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced last week that vaccinated Americans do not need to wear masks.
10But it is still unclear if that is the right decision for children in school.
11Most children have not yet been vaccinated.
12The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine for children as young as 12.
13It is unlikely, however, that many young children will be vaccinated before the end of the school year.
14CDC information shows that infection rates among American children ages 14-17 are now higher than for all Americans.
15The rates among children 6-13 are also rising.
16When asked about children wearing masks at school, the CDC director, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, said the agency would soon announce new guidelines for schools, businesses and other areas.
17The discussions about school rules have been emotional and highly divisive around the country.
18In some cases, police were called to meetings.
19School leaders have been caught between anti-mask parents and teachers' unions.
20School systems have changed decisions on the issue several times.
21Many see a continued need to protect children who are not vaccinated against COVID-19.
22Others argue that masks make children uncomfortable and the requirements limit personal freedom.
23"The mask is a personal choice, and I wore it at the beginning, but I just decided that it wasn't about the mask anymore," said Cynthia Licharowicz.
24She is a parent in Milton, Florida, who opposes the requirement.
25"So, I decided to take it off, and I wanted my child to have the same choice," she added.
26The arguments show the state of communities 14 months after the pandemic began to spread in the U.S.
27Some U.S. schools remain closed to stop infections.
28Others, from Alabama in the south to Wyoming in the west, decided to end student mask requirements.
29When the new school year starts in September, many more schools will likely end their requirements.
30In Arkansas, mask requirements will be illegal at the end of the summer.
31South Carolina recently ended its mask requirements for students, leaving the decision to individual communities.
32Many parents in schools where masks are no longer required are worried.
33"I don't see any harm in wearing masks, and there is potential harm in not wearing a mask," said Christie Black.
34She is the mother of two young school-age children in Mesa, Arizona.
35She did not understand the decision made by her community's schools to end the requirement.
36Evidence from earlier in the pandemic found children less likely than older people to be infected with the coronavirus and less likely to become seriously ill from COVID-19.
37Black continues to send her two children to school with masks, but says they remove the masks as soon as they see other children without them.
38"It just feels like we're more concerned with our own freedom and rights than doing what's best for the most vulnerable," she said.
39Back in Santa Rosa, Florida, Jennifer Hensley, a Santa Rosa County parent and public school teacher, was the only member of the public at the meeting who spoke in favor of keeping the mask requirement.
40She said she was worried about the health of teachers and of her 15-year-old daughter, who has an autoimmune disease.
41Another parent, Hailei Smead, a mother of three students, runs a Facebook group called Santa Rosa County Parents SPEAK UP.
42It was created in September to stop mask requirements and has nearly 900 registered members.
43"It's not society's job to protect every other individual," Smead said.
44"It's your own job to protect yourself and your family."
45"I strongly recommend the use of face masks, especially for those who are not fully vaccinated," school leader Ueberschaer said before the vote.
46She was rewarded with insults from some parents.
47"It truly does make me feel sad that face masks have morphed from a virus-prevention strategy to a political statement," she said.
48I'm Susan Shand.