US: Parents, Teachers Divided As Doctor Issues 'Mask Exemption Certificates' To Kids Amid Rising Covid Cases
The state clarified that the exemption needs to come from a doctor and not a parent. The school says they have no way to prove if an exemption is real and there is no other choice but to accept the document.
A local doctor has exempted dozens of students from wearing masks at school thanks to a medical exemption. According to a CBS report, the school district in California cannot do anything about and the parents are worried for the safety of their children.
Dr. Michael Huang¡¯s Roseville office is the man behind this exemption and his phone is ringing off the hook.
ABC
¡°We are fully booked up for the next three months, I can definitely get you in,¡± his receptionist Ashley said on the phone.
They¡¯re all looking for the same thing: a medical mask exemption.
CBS
At least 50 exemptions have been submitted at south Placer County School districts where about 85 percent of such exemptions have come from one doctor.
Dr. Huang maintains his exemptions are handed out after a physical exam.
When asked whether these exemptions are legitimate and if those students actually require mask exemptions, he said, ¡°The mask exemption letter, the one we do provide, each every one of them is after careful clinical exam and given appropriately."
Parents like Lou Foreman sought him out. He says his two Eureka School District kids have breathing issues.
¡°My kids today are in school, they¡¯re not masked and they¡¯ve been integrated into their classrooms,¡± he said.
CBS
However, Eureka School District parent Dr. Chris Lillis worries about the immunocompromised kids in his child¡¯s 5th-grade classroom.
¡°I¡¯m exasperated because I feel like it¡¯s such a small gesture to wear a mask to protect the health of someone who is less fortunate, and more vulnerable than we may be,¡± he said.
What are the medical excuses?
From breathing problems to something more severe, the California Department of Public Health has been unclear about what it means. On Friday, the state clarified that the exemption needs to come from a doctor and not a parent. The school says they have no way to prove if an exemption is real and there is no other choice but to accept the document.
¡°So school administrators, teachers, they¡¯re not in a position to question medical diagnoses, but they are required to follow guidance, which requires masks in the classroom,¡± said Michelle Eklund, Chief Communications Officer with the Placer County Office of Education.
