LA County to Require Indoor Masks for All as Delta Strain of COVID-19 Rises

Los Angeles County said Thursday that residents will once again have to wear masks indoors, regardless of their vaccination status, amid the spread of the highly contagious delta variant of COVID-19.

The new ordinance goes into effect Saturday night and comes just a month after California dropped most restrictions on those vaccinated and restarted its economy.

“We are not where we need to be for the millions of people at risk of infection here in Los Angeles County, and waiting to do something will be too late given what we are seeing now,” Dr Muntu Davis , county health official, said at a press briefing. “It’s a time when all the players are on the bridge. “

Previously, those who were fully vaccinated were allowed to remove their masks across California, but health officials said the new measures would help stem the spread of the delta strain. The orders will be in place for the foreseeable future, although Davis stressed that more restrictions could be put in place if the number of cases started to skyrocket.

“Wearing a mask indoors with others reduces the risk of contracting and transmitting the virus,” Los Angeles Public Health wrote on Twitter. “We demand a mask for everyone indoors in public places and businesses, regardless of vaccination status so that we can stop the increased level of transmission that we are seeing. “

In late June, Los Angeles public health officials urged residents to wear masks in public spaces again, citing the spread of the delta strain, which has since become the dominant variant of COVID-19 in the United States. .

Los Angeles County averages more than 1,000 new cases per day, a large increase from the average of 173 cases per day when the state was still under virus restrictions in mid-June. The Los Angeles Times notes, however, that cases and hospitalizations are more than 93% lower than they were at the height of the pandemic, and deaths are at low levels.

Health officials have stressed that even amid an upsurge in cases related to the delta variant, vaccines remain the best method to fight serious illness and death. Dr Anthony Fauci, the nation’s foremost infectious disease expert, continued to urge Americans to get vaccinated, and figures show nearly all COVID-19 deaths in the country are occurring among unvaccinated people.

About 51% of California’s population has been fully vaccinated.