As COVID-19 cases continue to rise in Baltimore County, restrictions have tightened. The latest restriction involves youth sports, resulting in the banning of all youth sports in the county effective immediately.
Obviously, kids that play sports in Baltimore County are upset with this decision, but the backlash from parents has been notable. Rachel Aragon of Fox News Baltimore says that “some parents are frustrated their children are being kept off the field.”
While the frustration from kids and parents is expected, city and county officials are doing everything they can to “stop the spread of COVID-19 by reinstating new restrictions.” At the moment, the COVID-19 positivity rate is at 6.3 percent. Aragon emphasizes that “if people don’t act now the case number will continue to grow.”
COVID-19 cases continue to spike across Baltimore and the surrounding areas, but parents continue to emphasize that kids “need interaction” with other kids and they “rely on outdoor exercise.” Because of the banning of youth sports, kids will be unable to interact with others on the playing field. Also, social gatherings in Baltimore County are now “capped at 10 people indoors and 25 outside.”
A key reason for the county’s decision to ban sports was an alarming number of young people contracting COVID-19. According to Craig Clary of The Baltimore Sun,
The fact that young athletes, sporting event attendees, and people engaging in outdoor activities are contracting COVID-19 at an alarming rate is a cause for great concern. Youth sports in Baltimore are now in jeopardy of being played any time soon, and with COVID-19 cases spiking in Baltimore County, it seems as if youth sports will not be played for the foreseeable future.
Featured Image courtesy of Fort George G. Meade Public Affairs Office via Flickr Creative Commons
