Guest Opinion: Mask Mandates in Our Schools

The Montana Nurses Association has referred to the recent emergency rule from Montana DPHHS regarding not masking in school as “promotion of junk science.” One might be wise to use caution as well as introspection in using such a bold statement.

MNA expressed frustration that the department did not cite peer reviewed studies in explaining its rule. For every peer reviewed study showing the effectiveness of masks, one could find at least as many showing they are not effective in reducing the risk of virus transmission, especially simple cloth masks worn improperly by school-age children.

The “junk science” may really be in only telling half-truths that have bred distrust in so many. For a profession that did its best to instill in me the idea of critical thinking, I have watched over the years as this concept is replaced with algorithms and protocols. When one ceases to critically think they become more susceptible to manipulation and thus control.

DPHHS was right in rule making that affirms parental rights in determining what is best for their own children. According to the State of Montana’s Covid website, not one child under the age of 19 in the past 1 1/2 years died of Covid. With the CDC’s statistics for Montana, there is a 99.9% survival rate in the rest of the population; masking children really isn’t an argument to use in protecting the elderly.

What is unquestionably known is Montana kids’ struggles with mental health. According to the Montana DPHHS website, suicide is the second leading cause of death among children 10-24. Studies are still being done on the long-term impacts of masking and over Covid-related disruptions to young minds, but masking and the associated policing of mandates undoubtedly is taking a toll on mental health, especially among those young Montanans already dealing with anxiety and social isolation issues.

Mask mandates in schools are certainly causing harm to mental health, while the protection masks in schools provide from Covid is uncertain at best. A person with any critical thinking skills doesn’t need a peer reviewed study to question why mask mandates are the choice being made. At a minimum, that choice should be made by parents who know their child’s needs best.

This lack of critical thinking discredits the Montana Nurses Association.