Metro Health issues health directive mandating the wearing of masks in schools – City of San Antonio

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Laura Mayes, City of San Antonio (210) 207-1337
Michelle Vigil, City of San Antonio (210) 207-8172
Rudy Arispe, City of San Antonio (210) 438-2088

SAN ANTONIO (August 10, 2020) – Bexar County District Court Judge Toni Arteaga has granted the city of San Antonio and Bexar County a temporary restraining order to prevent the execution of the governor’s last emergency order. The case will go to a full hearing on Monday August 16, 2021.

San Antonio and Bexar County Health Authority Dr Junda Woo has issued a sanitary directive for the next school year. The directive applies to all public schools from Kindergarten to Grade 12 effective immediately. City Manager Erik Walsh also announced that effective Wednesday, August 11, 2021, all City facilities will require the use of masks for staff and visitors.

Universal interior masking
Schools should follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommendations for universal indoor masking and require all students (ages 2 and older), staff, teachers, and visitors to K schools -12, regardless of their vaccination status, wear a face mask inside.

CDC Tips for Preventing COVID-19 in Kindergartens and High Schools.

Close contacts
Schools must notify a student’s parents or guardians when the school learns that a student was in close contact, as defined by the CDC, with someone who is HIV-positive for COVID-19 on campus or at a school-related event.

Unvaccinated people who are determined to be in close contact with someone positive for COVID-19 should be quarantined for 14 days after their last contact with someone who has COVID-19, as recommended by the CDC. Students, staff, teachers, and visitors should stay off campus and not attend any school sponsored events during their quarantine period.

CDC advice on when to quarantine.

Fully vaccinated people should get tested three to five days after exposure even if they have no symptoms and wear a mask in indoor public spaces for 14 days. Fully vaccinated individuals do not need quarantine.

“The pandemic has shown us the importance of in-person learning, but with the highly contagious delta variant now prevalent in San Antonio, schools need all the tools at their disposal to stay safe and open. These tools include universal masking, ”said Dr Junda Woo. “We must protect those who are still not eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, which includes all children under the age of 12, and unvaccinated members of their households. “