North Allegheny parents file federal lawsuit to block district's new mask-optional policy

The parents of four North Allegheny students with physical challenges have filed a federal lawsuit accusing the district of endangering their children by making it optional for staff and students to wear face masks in school.

The class-action lawsuit does not identify the four students, but notes that there are “as many as 1,557 children in the school district who are medically fragile disabled students who require the protection afforded by universal masking to reduce the risk of spread of covid-19 and helps them to have access to the school buildings for in-person instruction.”

The lawsuit was filed by Pittsburgh attorney Kenneth R. Behrend.

The lawsuit seeks to overturn the board’s 5-4 vote on Dec. 8 that will make masks optional starting on Jan. 17.

District spokeswoman Brandi Smith said school officials do not comment on pending litigation.

The lawsuit notes that last month’s vote changed the district’s health and safety plan, which required masks to be worn if the county transmission rate is “substantial” or “high.”

Parents who filed the lawsuit said the district should continue to use the rate of covid transmission in Allegheny County as the basis for decisions about whether masks should be required.

The lawsuit also argues that the vote to make masks optional is in opposition to a Back to School Plan developed over the summer that said the district’s decisions would be guided by local, state and federal recommendations.

In late July, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reversed course on some masking guidelines, recommending that even vaccinated people return to wearing masks indoors because coronavirus is fueling infection surges.

Last week, the Allegheny County Health Department said the county’s covid-19 positivity rate has been skyrocketing because of the fast-spreading omicron variant.

Citing new information about the variant’s ability to spread among vaccinated people, the CDC also is recommending indoor masks for all teachers, staff, students and visitors at schools nationwide, regardless of vaccination status.

“Instead of following the reliable information from responsible sources and supporting the compelling governmental interest by doing everything in its power to stem the spread of infection caused by covid-19 while it is in a substantial or high level risk of transmission in Allegheny County, the board voted … to arbitrarily and capriciously remove the protection provided by universal masking … regardless of (the) rate of transmission,” the lawsuit said.