Picente, McMahon Say Child Mask Requirement Makes No Sense

A pair of upstate New York county executives are using one of Governor Andrew Cuomo's own lines against him, and believe a recent state policy decision in a step in the wrong direction.

Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente and Onondaga County's Ryan McMahon sent a joint letter to New York's gov. asking he refute and immediately change course on a requirement that makes children, even as young as two, wear masks at daycare, and when at day camp or overnight camp.

They call the reversal on mask mandates for kids unnecessary and inexplicable, especially at a time when so much progress is being made when it comes to getting adults vaccinated, they say.

A portion of their letter to Cuomo reads:

''..if you follow the science, as you so often preach, research and expert analysis all point to the fact that children are not only less susceptible to being infected with COVID-19, they are also less likely to experience severe symptoms and require hospitalization. And with staff, parents and other adults increasingly being vaccinated throughout our counties, children are at less risk now than ever before.''

Further, they say it is unreasonable to expect children of such a young age to stay masked for upwards of 10 hours a day in those settings.

The two county execs noted and commended childcare facilities for 'an exemplary' job through the pandemic, even at its peak, of creating safe and healthy environments for kids that helped lower COVID-19 transmission rates.

''Our Health Departments will continue to work with all of these childcare and camp facilities to ensure they remain on the safe path they have been traveling,'' however Picente and McMahon asked for a reversal of the recently announced policy 'immediately.'