It's hard to believe that July is almost over, and soon August will be here. I'm sure you've already seen some back to school ads. I know I have. Soon we'll have a list of supplies that each of our children will need as they get ready to head back to class. But will the supply list include masks? Many kids and a lot of parents were fed up with masks by the end of the last school year. But due to the rise in cases of the contagious Delta variant of COVID, masks could once again be required by schools.

This week, the American Academy of Pediatrics made their voice heard by recommending that all children age 2 years old and older wear a mask when returning to school, regardless of their vaccination status, according to NBC News. The AAP stated that it is important for kids to return to in-person learning this year, a fact that I think most of us would agree with. They also recommend that all school staff should wear masks.

The reasoning behind the AAP's decision is much of the student population is not vaccinated. Kids 12 and over are eligible for COVID vaccines in the United States. My two oldest, Chase, 16, and Carly, 12, both have had their two shots. But Cayleigh, who won't be 12 until next March remains unvaccinated. The FDA says that emergency authorization for kids under 12 might come as soon as mid-winter.

So is the AAP being too strict? Some will say 'yes'. In fact, the Centers for Disease and Control recommended this month that students who have been fully vaccinated do not have to wear masks in classrooms. Who is right? It will undoubtedly come down to each individual school district and the number of cases in the area. But either way, you might not want to throw all those masks away just yet.

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