masks

The South Carolina Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that a mask mandate instituted by the University of South Carolina last month doesn't violate a state budget proviso. University officials withdrew the rule requiring masks inside campus buildings earlier this month after state Attorney General Alan Wilson opined that the mandate was "likely not consistent with the intent of the Legislature." Wilson cited a budget proviso that the high court has now interpreted to mean public universities and colleges can't enforce a mask mandate that only applies to the unvaccinated.

Hundreds of South Carolina students are already quarantined for COVID-19 at the start of the fall semester as the delta variant has led to a surge in cases. That's prompting some local governments to consider whether to require masks in schools in spite of a state budget proviso that bans districts from doing so without risking funding. Richland County Council is expected to vote Monday evening on an emergency ordinance to require the face coverings in schools and day cares. It could join the city of Columbia in doing so.

One of South Carolina's top state health officials says more COVID-19 outbreaks are inevitable in schools this fall. State Epidemiologist Dr. Linda Bell said Wednesday that schools could keep coronavirus spread low by ensuring mask wearing and social distancing, but the state's current virus trajectory suggests more cases are inevitable. Only a few schools have started their semesters, but health officials have already tracked 85 cases among students and staff during the first week of August. Bell says the state is on track to match or surpass virus levels seen during the height of the pandemic last winter. The epidemiologist's warnings come the same day the state surpassed 10,000 COVID-19 deaths.

South Carolina's top prosecutor says state law prohibits the city of Columbia from instituting a school mask mandate intended to cover children who are age-ineligible for the coronavirus vaccine. Attorney General Alan Wilson wrote to Mayor Steve Benjamin that the recently-approved measure is "in conflict with state law and should either be rescinded or amended." Columbia leaders last week ratified an ordinance mandating the use of masks in the city's elementary and middle schools for at least the beginning of the school year. South Carolina is now averaging nearly 3,000 new cases of COVID-19 a day and hospitals in the state are filling up fast.

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster is updating the state on the status of the COVID-19 pandemic. The governor repeated Monday there's no need to require masks in schools as they reopen this month. But McMaster also says the delta variant of the virus does pose a real threat and continued to urge people to get vaccinated. The COVID-19 trends in South Carolina are alarming. The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 has increased four times while the number on ventilators or in intensive care have increase five times since the end of June.

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said Friday that he sees a city-enforced school mask mandate - intended to cover children not eligible for the coronavirus vaccine - as a violation of state law.

The mayor of South Carolina's capital city has issued a school mask mandate, which he says would protect vaccine-ineligible children amid the coronavirus's resurgence. Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin made that proclamation Wednesday. The effort puts the Democrat at odds with Republican Gov. Henry McMaster as well as the GOP-controlled Legislature, which recently barred such policies for all public schools. A new legislative measure prohibits mask mandates in South Carolina's public schools. Benjamin says he feels he has the authority to impose one for students in his city. Benjamin told The Associated Press on Wednesday that he plans to use city, not state, funds to provide masks in the city's elementary and middle schools.

The state's top prosecutor says the University of South Carolina can't lawfully require students and staff to wear face coverings on campus this fall, despite increasing cases of coronavirus, thanks to recent legislative action. University officials said last week they would require "face coverings to be worn at all times inside all campus buildings" except dorms, private offices or dining halls.

The University of South Carolina is requiring students to wear masks indoors this fall as the spread of COVID-19 has sped up across the state. School officials said Friday that masks are again required inside campus buildings given Richland County's high coronavirus transmission rate. The announcement follows recently updated federal guidance that calls for mask-wearing indoors regardless of vaccination status in areas where the delta variant is rapidly spreading.

South Carolina health officials are still recommending students and teachers wear masks indoors to curb COVID-19's spread in the upcoming school year, though state lawmakers have already banned school districts from requiring the face coverings. The mask recommendation is part of new coronavirus guidance for schools released Thursday by South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control. The health agency says the suggestions reflect current virus trends as cases have risen rapidly in the state. Officials are also encouraging schools to set up vaccination clinics and maintain at least three feet of distance between students. Nearly 19,000 COVID-19 cases have been identified among students and staff over the past school year.