Maryland’s Board of Education on Tuesday passed a new set of regulations that would lead to the dropping of mask mandates in the state’s public schools.
On a 12-1 vote, the board approved an emergency regulation that lets counties decide to drop the mandates if one of three criteria are met:
- If 80% of students in a school are fully vaccinated;
- If 80% of the population of the surrounding county are fully vaccinated;
- If transmission rates in the county are in the low or moderate range, defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as fewer than 50 new cases per 100,000 people or a test positivity rate under 8%, for 14 days.
“We’ve got to embrace the new baselines and get to work,” said Superintendent Mohammed Choudhury. “Schools have to stay open.”
The regulation needs legislative approval.
WTOP’s Melissa Howell contributed to this report.
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