
More: Parents worry about youngest students as JCPS heads back to classes What are Kentucky schools doing already? In recent days, however, many districts have been revising their mask-optional policies. "I'm going to have the courage to do what I know is right to protect our children," Beshear said before announcing the mandate.

Several districts ignored Beshear's recommendation to have everyone mask up, instead leaving it up to parents to decide if their child would wear a mask. Kids under 12 are not old enough for the COVID-19 vaccination.īeshear pushed school district leaders to implement a universal mask policy in recent weeks, repeatedly stopping short of issuing an executive order. Beshear's new mask mandate for Kentucky schools Kristina Bryant, a children's infectious diseases specialist at Norton Healthcare, said Tuesday.Īlso: What to know about Gov. Only 30% of Kentucky's kids older than 12 have gotten at least one dose of the vaccination, Dr.

"Kids are not immortal," Day said. "It should be rare that a child would need to go to the hospital." View Gallery: Louisville schools head back to classrooms: See photos of first days Scottie Day said, but there has been an increase of children being hospitalized week over week. Kentucky is in the midst of one of the fastest surges of COVID-19 cases yet, Beshear said.ĬOVID-19 is "hitting kids in a way that we haven't seen before," Beshear said.Ī majority of kids don't end up in the hospital, Kentucky Children's Hospital Physician in Chief Dr. "This is how we make sure we protect our children, but this is also how we make sure that they stay in school," Beshear said Tuesday afternoon.ĭozens of Kentucky's 171 school districts are scheduled to start a new school year Wednesday morning. KY mask mandate: Kentucky school leader's voicemail about mask mandate calls Andy Beshear 'liberal lunatic' Under the new requirement, anyone inside a Kentucky school facility will be required to wear a face mask, regardless of their vaccination status against COVID-19.īeshear's executive order applies to all public and private schools, as well as preschools and child care centers. It lasts for 30 days. Andy Beshear issued a new mask mandate Tuesday for Kentucky's schools, less than a day before many districts will welcome kids back to class. So frustrating.Watch Video: Expert: Kids can be safe in school with masks Whitney Westerfield, R-Crofton, tweeted, “Did anyone even speak at all to the psychological and educational harm to students wearing masks all day? I sure didn’t catch it if they did. America, and our children, are worth fighting for!”Īfter Beshear’s Tuesday news conference, Sen. It’s time to remind big government bureaucrats and their would-be king that will not abide. “From the onset of Beshear’s mandates, I have sought to lead from the front in defending your liberties. “Now is the time to stand, KY,” Maddox tweeted Wednesday.

She refused and refuted the affiliation and has since said she plans to seek the Republican nomination for governor.

The Kentucky Democratic Party called on Maddox to resign in May after they claimed she was affiliated with a white supremacy group that hanged Beshear in effigy on the Capitol grounds. Maddox has remained one of Beshear’s most vocal opponents during the pandemic, at times openly defying his executive orders, including the statewide mask mandate when it was in place. HB 1 would allow businesses, schools, nonprofits and churches to stay open if they meet COVID-19 guidelines set by either the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or Kentucky’s executive branch, whichever is least restrictive.īeshear’s latest executive order mandating masks in K-12 schools and child care settings applies for 30 days and leaves open the indefinite option of renewal. SB 2 would give legislative committees more control and oversight of emergency administrative regulations handed down by the governor. SB 1 would cap the governor’s ability to issue executive orders during a state of emergency to 30 days unless the General Assembly chose an extension. In early June, the Kentucky Supreme Court heard oral arguments in that case and another related one, but justices have yet to hand down a decision, so those laws have yet to take effect. Beshear then filed a lawsuit to block the bills from taking effect and a judge ordered a temporary injunction, which was quickly countered by an appeal from Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s office. In February, the governor vetoed the Republican-backed bills, but the legislature overrode his vetoes.
