A joint press conference was held Tuesday morning by the SC Chapter of American Academy of Pediatrics as well as State Epidemiologist Dr. Linda Bell and State Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman discussing school safety amidst COVID.
With the delta variant of COVID on the rise, massive spikes have been seen rivaling previous pandemic peaks in some states including South Carolina.
Dr. Bell and Superintendent Spearman at the press conference both expressed their agreement with recommendations for all students to return to schools masked to help prevent the spread of the disease.
Dr. Bell also recommended that everyone above the age of 12 should get vaccinated and that everyone should wear masks in public to combat the recent COVID spikes.
"The solutions are immediately within our grasp," Dr. Bell said. "They're simple, they're evidence-based. And we're asking people to simply comply with what will protect our students, our staff members, our healthcare providers and our healthcare systems."
She continued to warn that failing to follow recommendations for vaccinating and wearing masks and allowing the delta variant to run rampant will likely only lead to more issues, potentially even a more dangerous variant that builds a resistance to the current vaccines.
Superintendent Spearman also said during the press conference that she wants to see legislatures return to suspend the proviso preventing schools from implementing mask mandates.
She said that she believes it should be left up to school districts who know their individual situations to decide if mask mandates need to be implemented.
You can watch the full press conference below:
