White House keeps encouraging masks in schools: Report

The White House maintained its adherence to US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance encouraging mask usage in schools Monday (local time) as some states take steps toward lifting mask mandates in the classroom, CNN reported.

The CDC recommends that those who are vaccinated should "wear a mask indoors in public if you are in an area of substantial or high transmission."

As CNN reported earlier Monday, New Jersey's universal mask mandate for all schools and child care settings will be lifted on March 7, Governor Phil Murphy, announced during a news conference.

Delaware Governor John Carney announced that the state's universal indoor mask mandate will end on Friday and that school mask mandates will expire March 31, CNN reported.

New Jersey and Delaware are still areas of high transmission, per the CDC, and the White House continues to recommend masks in its schools, though White House press secretary Jen Psaki reiterated that implementation was up to school districts.

"Our advice to every school district is to abide by public health guidelines. It continues to be at this point that the CDC is advising that masks can delay, reduce transmission. There are also a number of other mitigation measures that we put in place, but that continues to be CDC guidance," Psaki said.

"It's always been up to school districts. That's always been our point of view and always been our policy from here. And our policy from the federal government is to continue to advise everybody to abide by public health guidelines," she added.

( With inputs from ANI )