GOP leads measure to end vaccine and mask mandates for children in Head Start
Two Republicans introduced a resolution Thursday with the hope of ending vaccine and mask requirements for children in Head Start programs.
Reps. Dave Joyce of Ohio and Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa introduced the measure addressing mandates for children in the federally funded programs, which seek to promote school preparedness for children in low-income families.
“Now that our schools have begun in-person learning, we should not be enforcing unnecessary mask mandates on those with the least likely chance of getting severely ill from COVID-19," Miller-Meeks said. "Children in Head Start programs are in some of the most economically vulnerable populations and need our support. I am proud to join Congressman Joyce in working to lift the unnecessary mask mandate on these students."
“The federal government should not be using taxpayer money to force children as young as 2 years old to wear face masks,” Joyce said.
“If parents or individual Head Start programs want to mask themselves or their kids, they have every right to do so. But the federal government should not insert itself into that decision-making process, especially when children are the least at risk for COVID-19 but the most likely to suffer developmental setbacks from prolonged masking," he added. "I’m proud to introduce this resolution with Congresswoman Miller-Meeks to protect parents’ rights and prevent mask mandates from further stunting our children’s educational and emotional growth.”
If successful, the resolution would express congressional disapproval of the rules surrounding vaccine and mask mandates for children in these programs submitted by the Department of Health and Human Services.
According to the resolution's text, the rules would then "have no force or effect."
This comes as a Florida judge recently vacated the Biden administration's federal travel mask mandate, evoking a myriad of responses across the political spectrum.
On Wednesday, the Department of Justice announced it is appealing the ruling in order to reinstate the mandate.
Last year, 24 states, including Louisiana, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Wyoming, and West Virginia, sued the federal government over the mandates for young children in the programs.
According to the states, the mandates are "unlawful," "exceed the executive’s statutory authority," "illegally bypassed notice and comment," and are "arbitrary and capricious."