DPHHS issues 'rule' urging school districts to consider parent's wishes on masks

Gov. Greg Gianforte announced Tuesday that the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services has issued an emergency rule to promote parental rights regarding masking in schools.

The rule does not appear to prevent schools from imposing mask mandates, but encourages them to take into account the desires of parents as the ultimate decision makers when it comes to health-related decisions for their children.

“Montana students deserve to be back in their classroom in as normal and safe an environment as possible,” Gianforte said in a press release. “Montana parents deserve to know their voices are heard in schools when health-related mandates for their children are being considered. They also deserve to know that schools are reviewing reliable data and scientific research about the impacts of mask mandates on students.”

Based on the “should” language used it doesn’t appear that this emergency rule actually imposes any restrictions upon school districts, but provides a number of justifications that parents may use to “opt-out” of mandates, many of which are already conditions that can be used as a basis for exemption, as students and their parents can already consult their health care provider about conditions that might make mask wearing unsafe.

“In order to provide for the health, well-being, rights, and educational needs of students,” the rule reads, “Schools and school districts should consider, and be able to demonstrate consideration of, parental concerns when adopting a mask mandate, and should provide students and/or their parents or guardians, on their behalf, with the ability to opt-out of health-related mandates, to include wearing a mask or face covering, for reasons including, physical health, mental health, emotional health, psychosocial health, developmental needs, religious belief, moral conviction, or other fundamental right the impairment of which could negatively impact the physical, mental, emotional, or psychosocial health of students.”

Medical professionals can provide exemptions to mask mandates due to health reasons.

In the press release Gianforte claims the research behind the efficacy of masks in a school setting is inconclusive, calling mask mandates “arbitrary.”

While data regarding the extent of mask wearing’s effectiveness in school environments is generally not as robust as it is for mask wearing generally, every major medical and public health institution in the U.S. and worldwide attests to effectiveness of masks as a mitigation tool for the spread of COVID-19 such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Mayo Clinic, American Medical Association, World Health Organization, Rochester Clinic, Johns Hopkins University Medical School, Harvard Medical School and Stanford University Medical School.

Data about the delta variant of COVID-19 suggests that it may be more dangerous to children than the original strain though they are generally less in danger of showing severe symptoms.

While data also shows a general correlation between the severity of symptoms and how contagious someone is, the delta variant is in general far more contagious and school districts around the U.S. are already seeing a significant amount of cases among students.

CJI School in Chester delayed its opening for two weeks due to COVID-19 and Havre Public Schools has reported several cases in people associated with the district since it opened last Wednesday.

The CDC and The American Academy of Pediatrics along with many other organizations have recommended mask wearing in schools and medical institutions across the U.S. regard it as an effective tool for mitigation with little downside.

DPHHS Director Adam Meier, appointed by Gianforte earlier this year, said in the press release that masks may have adverse effects on students’ health mental and physical.

The idea that mask wearing has any significant impact on a students physical health, outside of those with respiratory conditions, is widely considered by the larger medical community to be a myth.

“There is a tremendous amount of disinformation circulating regarding the use of masks to decrease transmission of COVID-19. As with many aspects of the pandemic, mask use has become politicized which is unfortunate when it comes to public health,” said Dr. David G. Hills of the American Lung Association.

He points out that medical staff wear masks for hours upon hours a day and no evidence exists that it has an adverse effect on them.

As for the effects on students’ mental health, while some psychologists have raised concerns about the effect that masks have on communication development in young students due to the resulting inability to read faces, the prevailing sentiment of psychologist throughout the country is that there is no credible evidence the mask wearing causes significant psychological distress for children.

Many point out that while children are at increased risk of depression and related mental health issues this past 18 months, that is much more likely a result of the general stress of living with the pandemic and the social isolation that comes with that.