Johnson County Commission votes to approve order requiring masks for some students

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The Johnson County Board of Commissioners met Thursday morning to discuss a mask order for the “most vulnerable” group of Johnson County citizens — young children.The order calls for all students in sixth grade down to pre-k, in both public and private school settings, to wear masks or face coverings to reduce the spread of COVID-19.After a lengthy debate with hours of public comment, that public health order passed the commission, 5-2. “This is a targeted health initiative focused on students who do not currently have access to the vaccine,” health officials said during the meeting. The order also applies to faculty, staff, and visitors to schools with grades six and under. If a school building contains grades above sixth, those students would either need to be separated from the younger grades or would also be required to wear masks.Dr. Joseph LeMaster, the Health Advisor for the Johnson County Department of Health and Environment called this order a “conservative approach to keep schools open.”The order is set to begin Monday, Aug. 9 and run until May 31 or until the time the commission votes to suspend the order. More than 90 people signed up to provide public comment at the meeting, with many viewpoints both for and against the virus. Meanwhile, outside the meeting, dozens held a “Facial Freedom Rally” to make voices opposing the measure heard. During his testimony, Dr. Sanmi Areola, director of the Johnson County Department of Health and Environment, discussed the upcoming school year saying a school’s “indoor environment is perfect for proliferation of the virus.”Areola presented hospitalization data for children in Johnson County, saying since the start of the pandemic, 15 children ages 12 to 17 were hospitalized for treatment of COVID-19, and 8 children ages 3 to 11 were hospitalized. Areola added three children have been hospitalized since June.”Yes, the numbers are low right now,” he said. “That’s the way to keep it.”Areola added that around 40 percent of children ages 12-17 in Johnson County have been vaccinated. With regard to the public health order, LeMaster said the JCDHE and county commission would work closely with schools on enforcement if and when cases start to rise. He also said standalone daycare centers not part of the school system have their own requirements set by the state and would be covered by those requirements, not the public health order. The board also voted on an amendment to expand the grades under this order to pre-k through 12. That amendment failed 4-3, despite a push from parents and doctors in the county for universal masking.