DALLAS — Dallas ISD may drop its mask mandate at the end of this month. The Texas attorney general is suing to force the CDC, airports and airlines to drop theirs.
But medical experts, advising the caution they've preached during this entire pandemic, question if it's time to lift the last COVID-19 barrier.
"While the trend is heading in a very favorable direction, the raw numbers are still high," said Dr. Mark Casanova with the UTSW COVID Task Force, the collection of medical experts tracking COVID data and issuing COVID forecasts in North Texas.
"I think we would want the center that's focused on controlling diseases to be our guide," he said of CDC guidance when asked about the Texas attorney general's lawsuit.
Ken Paxton's lawsuit, on behalf of congresswoman Beth Van Duyne whose district includes DFW Airport, contends that the federal mask mandate at airports is illegal and is in "disregard of the individual liberties of Texans."
He also sent a letter to the City of Denton demanding it stop its practice of enforcing mask wearing in all common areas on city property.
According to CDC and Texas Health and Human Services data, the U.S. is still averaging more than 2,000 COVID-19 deaths each day and more than 100 in Texas. But, with numbers steadily dropping since mid-January, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky says the agency is contemplating a change to mask guidance in the coming weeks.
"We're on the downside of this omicron variant impact. So that's a good thing," Dallas County Health Director Philip Huang told WFAA. "We're all hopeful. I'm as hopeful as anyone. I'm as tired of this as anyone and want to get out of this too. But I think we've learned that we need to continue to be cautious," he said of mask-wearing and vaccinations.
"Everywhere I go, my little blue buddy is with me," Dr. Mark Casanova said while holding up his mask. "We're not quite in the end zone yet. We're gonna get there. We're just not quite there yet."
"Life in medicine is looking a bit more optimistic as of late and upbeat," Casanova said. "We're just hoping we don't have a classic fumble right at the goal line."