Officials from the school district level to the state Legislature this week called for clear metrics in determining the future of New York's mask mandate in classrooms amid increasingly heated debate over how to best handle the current phase of the COVID-19 pandemic for students, teachers and education personnel.

The calls also come as New York state officials on Thursday eased mask rules for businesses, but kept the mandate in place inside hospitals, prisons, homeless shelters and on public transportation.

Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the state would assess masking in schools in early March following the coming winter break, scheduled for Feb. 21 in many districts.

But state lawmakers, including many Democrats, are seeking an off-ramp for the school mask mandate as neighboring states relax their rules and the issue becomes increasingly fraught for parents, teachers and school district leaders.

"Given the positive position New York now finds itself in when it comes to our COVID-19 statistics, let’s establish clear metrics and guidelines for ending the mask mandate in our schools," said Assemblywoman Pat Fahy and Assemblyman John McDonald in a join statement. "Studies have indicated that masks, which have been effective at preventing in-school transmission, can negatively impact young students’ experiences, mental well-being, and at times, their ability to learn."

Said Democratic Assemblywoman Monica Wallace, “I encourage the Governor and Department of Health to hasten that guidance and allow discretion over school mask mandates to be returned to schools as soon as safely possible."

A push for clear metrics and guidelines for determining an end to masking requirements also came from school superintendents.

"While we all understand the need for masking during high rates of transmission, providing specific metrics for when this requirement can be optional as transmission rates decrease or vaccination rates reach a certain threshold is essential to maintaining our focus on teaching and learning," wrote Tom Douglas, the superintendent of the Horseheads school district in the state's Southern Tier region, in a letter to the governor and state Health Commissioner Mary Bassett. "We would also ask that the state avoid having to differing masking rules for the public in general and schools."

Hochul this week indicated those metrics will likely include, but not be limited to, the latest COVID case count, hospitalizations and the number of people who have been vaccinated.

If New York were to ease mask mandates in schools, local officials would likely still have the flexibility to put their own rules for masking indoors in place, as is the case now for local governments and businesses.

New York has seen a sharp drop in the number of COVID cases after record daily increases in January amid the surge of the omicron variant, a highly contagious version of the virus. Still, omicron has been less severe, generally, for people who are fully vaccinated and have received booster shots.

Hospitalizations have also slowed in recent days, and as mask rules are eased in the northeast, Hochul moved to do so on Wednesday for businesses.

There were still unknowns with the virus, public health officials have said. New variants more resistant to vaccines and booster shots may emerge, leading to yet another rise in illnesses and hospitalizations for a health system already stretched thin.

But as the public has become increasingly weary of mitigation efforts to control the spread of the virus, officials have been left with a patchwork of conflicting rules from state officials and the federal government on masking.

Douglas, in his letter to Hochul and Bassett, said his concerns were reflected by parents who want a way to return to normal.

"In speaking with our families, the consistent message we receive is how they need to get back to normal," he wrote. "Frankly, they need more consistency from their schools, and we agree with that concept."