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CDC reaffirmed its recommendation for in-person K-12 learning this fall -- calling it "a priority" -- but urged masking for all students age 2 years and older if they are not fully vaccinated.

While encouraging all those eligible to be vaccinated against COVID-19, CDC emphasized the importance of indoor masking, especially in crowded settings where it is impossible to maintain physical distancing, especially as children under age 12 are not yet eligible for vaccination. Based on estimates of CDC data, roughly 37% and 28.5% of eligible school-age children (ages 12-17) have received at least one dose of the vaccine or are fully vaccinated, respectively.

The was posted to the agency's website on Friday.

In addition, the CDC recommended 3 feet of distance between students, noting that distancing combined with masking can reduce indoor transmission risk. But they said schools "should not exclude students from in-person learning to keep a minimum distance requirement" and stressed the importance of indoor masking over distancing.

Even if it's impossible to maintain distancing to fully reopen, "it is especially important to layer multiple other prevention strategies, such as indoor masking," the agency said.

These other strategies included public health interventions, such as proper ventilation, COVID-19 screening, hand hygiene and "respiratory etiquette," such as keeping children, teachers, and staff home at the sign of any "infectious illness," and referring them to healthcare providers for testing and care. If and when a child does contract COVID-19, appropriate contact tracing, isolation, and quarantine measures should be followed, the agency said.

They also mentioned cleaning and disinfection as "important layers of prevention" for safe schools.

Finally, the CDC discussed the role of community transmission, adding that multi-layered prevention strategies are the most important in areas with "moderate-to-high transmission." Schools should use community transmission, as well as vaccination coverage, and occurrence of outbreaks, as guidelines to implement the appropriate level of prevention strategies, the agency noted.

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