California Extends Indoor Mask Mandate Into February For Remaining State Counties As Case Count Surges
Spooked by a record number of new Omicron cases emerging in the state, public health officials have extended their expiring mandate that masks must be worn indoors at last until Feb. 15
The extension comes as the original order was set to be reevaluated Jan. 15 and applies to residents regardless of their vaccination status, unless they have a specific and narrow exemption.
Several California counties — including Los Angeles, Ventura, and most of the San Francisco Bay Area — already have their own indoor mask mandates . Those have no specific expiration date. Now, the entire state will be under a mandate, including previous outliers San Diego, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties.
Over the last week, California has seen an average of 54,695 new coronavirus cases per day. That’s the highest rolling total of the pandemic. The previous high in the surge was about 46,000 cases per day last winter. However, the death counts have remained relatively level over the last four to six months and have not recently spiked.
Hospitalizations are also not skyrocketing. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows the rate of those infected with Covid-19 who are hospitalized has dropped 50 percent compared to the record highs seen a year ago. Three percent of cases are admitted to hospitals, the CDC data shows.
So far, officials have not asked for business or school closures, and Los Angeles officials have insisted Super Bowl LVI will go on as scheduled on Feb. 13 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood.
Public Health Modifies Health Officer Order to Add Additional Masking
Requirements for Indoor Employees – 26,754 New Positive Cases and 27 New Deaths Due to COVID-19 in Los Angeles County. View: https://t.co/mMxQcDYZTl pic.twitter.com/7I2NOdUfFC— LA Public Health (@lapublichealth) January 6, 2022