Feb. 8 (UPI) — California health officials announced Monday the state’s current COVID-19 rules mandating near-universal indoor face coverings will not be renewed after they expire next week.
The office of Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a tweet the controversial masking mandate, implemented last month to deal with a surge of new infections due to the Omicron variant, will be allowed to expire on Feb. 15 and won’t be renewed.
“Cases have decreased 65% since the Omicron peak,” the officials wrote. “Stay vigilant, get vaccinated, get boosted.”
During the height of the surge last month, state health officials were recording an average of more than 110,000 new COVID-19 cases per day — that figure has since fallen to around 45,000 new daily cases, according to state health data.
The change only affects those who are vaccinated — the indoor mask mandate will still apply to unvaccinated people. It also will remain in place for higher-risk areas, such as public transit and nursing homes.
The statewide requirement that school children wear masks inside classrooms also remains in place, even as the state of New Jersey announced Monday it will drop a similar rule next month.
“Omicron has loosened its hold on California, vaccines for children under 5 are around the corner, and access to COVID-19 treatments is improving,” California Public Health Officer Dr. Tomas Aragon told reporters.
“With things moving in the right direction, we are making responsible modifications to COVID-19 prevention measures, while also continuing to develop a longer-term action plan for the state,” he said.
Even after the statewide mandate expires, several major California counties will still have their own indoor masking rules, including Los Angeles County and most of the counties in the San Francisco Bay region.
Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said last week she will consider the Omicron surge over when the county’s hospitalizations fall below 2,500 for seven consecutive days, after which the mask requirements would be dropped for outdoor concerts and sports events, schools and child-care facilities.
Los Angeles County had a seven-day average of around 3,600 hospitalizations as of Friday, according to county health officials.
