The following letter was issued in August 2021 by 17 Putnam County physicians and nurses, including several that practice in the Village of Bluffton.

Back to school time! We are celebrating the beginning of another school year in person. The question on many minds is whether or not masks are necessary in our schools. And politics aside, all of us, parents, school administrators and staff, grandparents, and all champions of children, have just one concern: What is best for the kids?

Asking this question in August, 2021, is different from asking it even a few months ago.  The Delta variant of COVID-19 (B.1.617.2) has reached our country and is reaching our counties.  This form of COVID-19 is a bit of a change from the virus we fought last year, but with many similarities.  One of the most important differences the Delta variant brings is a higher rate of contagiousness.  Studies indicated that every person infected with the initial COVID-19 virus was likely to infect 2.3-2.7 other people, and the Delta variant has been found to spread to 5-8 additional people for every person infected.  

Vaccinations continue to be very effective at preventing serious illness and death due to COVID-19. While the mutations that have led to the Delta variant are causing a small proportion of breakthrough infections, COVID-19 vaccinations continue to be extremely effective at preventing hospitalization and death. Vaccines are our primary means of defending against COVID-19, and the Delta variant is not an exception to this. Vaccination is our long-term solution to COVID-19. While vaccinated people infrequently become severely ill, they can transmit the virus to others. Therefore, vaccines cannot be the only strategy to contain COVID-19.

There is one especially vulnerable group of our community- those under 12 years old.  They cannot yet be vaccinated.  We have all heard that COVID-19 is not a big deal in kids, and often that is the case.  Even when it is not a big health deal for a specific child, it still causes significant disruption in many ways.  Infected children can’t go to school, and they miss more than a day or two.  Their parents and siblings have to quarantine.  We have all seen the difficulties related to COVID infection and exposure play out in our schools and communities, and we can all agree that we would prefer to avoid this.  In addition, sometimes COVID-19 infection in a child is a “big deal.”  A study from England (studying infections in children with the Alpha variant of COVID-19) shows that 1 in 25 children infected with COVID-19 will experience symptoms lasting more than 4 weeks.  There definitely have been and will be instances where the symptoms are severe and where children are hospitalized.  

But do masks really cut down on infection?  There is overwhelming evidence that they do.  You probably know it from your own experience also - the incidence of the common cold and influenza was dramatically decreased last school year, as schools practiced masking and social distancing.  

What is the cost of masking in schools? There definitely are downsides. The largest drawback is the loss of connection. Communication with a mask covering half of your face is different than without one. Emotions can be hidden, meanings can be missed, directions can be misunderstood.  Masks are not comfortable.

When there is a medical dilemma, we weigh the risks/costs and the benefits. For this decision, we agree with the American Academy of Pediatrics and the CDC:  the balance leans heavily to the side of requiring masks.

Is all this really applicable here in rural Ohio? Can you take information that applies to Columbus and apply it to Columbus Grove? In this case, yes. We are already seeing an increase in COVID cases in our offices. The number of patients hospitalized because of COVID-19 in our local hospitals has more than tripled in the last few weeks. Learning from what has happened and is happening in surrounding states, we are in for more COVID.  

We know you are tired of COVID19, with its restrictions and divisiveness. We are as tired as you are, or maybe even more tired. Even writing this letter felt like a struggle, but it is a struggle we chose to take on. We are supporting and encouraging required masking in schools because we care. Yes, we care about our children and our friends’ children. But beyond that, we care about your children. We care about their education and their health.  

Kent Brandenberry, DO; father to a 13 year old, 10 year old, and 6 year old

N. Corry Clinton, MD; father to an 8 year old and 4 year old

Kendra Cross APRN-CNP; mother to a 7 year old, 5 year old, and 3 year old

Jacinta Eickholt, MD; mother to a 10 year old, 9 year old, 6 year old, and 4 year old

Leah Eiden MD, mother to an 18 year old, a 15 year old, and 10 year old

Jeff Eiden MD, father to an 18 year old, a 15 year old, and 10 year old

Paige Frey, APRN CNP; mother to a 5 year old and 2 year old

Darrel Hottmire, MD; father to a 22 year old and 20 year old

Brendon Hovest, APRN CNP; father to a 15 year old and 11 year old

Kristine Kaufman, APRN CNP; mother to a 30 year old, 27 year old, and 21 year old, and grandmother to 4 year old, and 9 month old

Katelyn Leopold, MD; mother to a 13 year old, 9 year old, 7 year old, 6 year old, and 1 year old

Jennifer Maag, MD; mother to a 10 year old, 8 year old, 6 year old, and 3 year old

Alisa Marzec, MD; mother to a 10 year old, 8 year old, 5 year old, 4 year old, and 2 year old

Steve McCullough, DO; grandfather to a 13 year old, 11 year old, 9 year old, 7 year old, 7 year old, 5 year old, 5 year old, 3 year old, and another 3 year old and a 1 week old

Amber Seggerson, APRN CNP; mother to an 11 year old and 6 year old

Kathleen Selhorst, APRN CNP; mother to 28 year old, 25 year old, and 23 year old

Lindsey Spitnale-Slattman, APRN-CNP; mother of an 8 year old, 6 year old, and 3 year old

*We are writing as individuals and not as representatives of our employers or hospital systems.*

https://www.kff.org/policy-watch/covid-19-vaccine-breakthrough-cases-data-from-the-states/

Leidman E, Duca LM, Omura JD, Proia K, Stephens JW, Sauber-Schatz EK. COVID-19 Trends Among Persons Aged 0–24 Years — United States, March 1–December 12, 2020. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2021;70:88–94. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7003e1

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanchi/article/PIIS2352-4642(21)00198-X/fulltext