CMS votes to repeal mask mandate

Why it matters: This means Charlotte-area schoolchildren will get to attend classes maskless for the first time since before the pandemic began. For months, mask mandates have been the center of heated school board debates nationwide.

Around Charlotte, a growing number of school districts have opted to make masks optional for students, teachers and staff, including Iredell-Statesville, Gaston, Union, Cabarrus and Lincoln.

Of note: Masks will still be required in certain places including on buses. Furthermore, the district will not tolerate bullying of anyone who decides to continue to wear a mask, superintendent CMS superintendent Earnest Winston said.

• There are a few reasons for the March 7 date: For one, Winston said, principals have asked for “some runway” in implementing the change.
• Secondly, local health officials have said they anticipate further declines in case counts within the coming weeks, he added.

“We are going to have to live with COVID,” Winston said.

Speaking to the school board Tuesday, county health director Raynard Washington said he supports the March 7 effective date. He continues to recommend indoor mask-wearing for anyone who is at high risk of serious illness from COVID-19.

Zoom out: Last week, Mecklenburg County Commissioners voted to end the local mask mandate, effective this Saturday. The next day, Gov. Cooper said he is encouraging other counties and school districts across North Carolina to similarly end their mask mandates.

Go deeper: Charlotte inches toward a return to ‘normal’ on the COVID-19 front

“It’s time to focus on getting our children a good education and improving our schools, no matter how you feel about masks,” Cooper said in a statement last week.

Of note: While local governments continue to lift mandates, you still have to wear a mask in certain places, such as the airport, hospitals and doctor’s offices.

• Businesses can also require employees and customers to wear masks.