DepEd permits learners to remove face masks in classrooms

DepEd permits learners to remove face masks in classrooms

A day before full face-to-face classes in public schools start again, the Department of Education (DepEd) said that students could take off their face masks on campus, even inside. 

Michael Poa, a spokesman for the DepEd, said on Tuesday that this decision was made because President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s Executive Order No. 7 got rid of the face mask rule. 

As of October 28, face masks are no longer required to be worn indoors or outdoors. The only places where they are still needed are hospitals, ambulances, and public transportation. Even though masks were optional, the directive "encouraged" the elderly, people with multiple illnesses, people with weakened immune systems, women who were pregnant, people who hadn't been vaccinated, and people who were sick to keep wearing them.

 A policy that allows people to choose whether or not to wear face masks indoors and outdoors is a good idea that would get people moving and help get the economy fully open again.

Even though rules are being loosened, a new COVID-19 outbreak in the country is still a worry. The Department of Health (DOH) has said that allowing people to choose whether or not to wear masks inside could lead to up to 18,000 more infections per day by the end of the year. The DOH has consistently advocated for individuals to wear masks to avoid contracting COVID-19. 

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In September, the agency said that it was not yet time to make it easier for people to wear masks outside, but the IATF and Marcos' executive order went against it.

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