NCOSEA Voice: Masks and the Civil Rights of Students with Disabilities

As students returned to in-person learning, including those with disabilities whose medical conditions put them at increased risk of illness or death from COVID, several schools and parents went to court to challenge prohibitions of mask mandates and public health orders that let students and staff opt out of mandates. Federal district courts in multiple states heard requests for injunctive relief and declaratory judgment. In most cases, plaintiffs claimed the actions violate the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1974 because they prevent these students from equal and meaningful access to public school facilities.