Massachusetts doesn’t plan to reissue mask warrant, amid COVID surge

Coronavirus

“We are not seeking to change any of our existing rules or policies.”

Don’t expect mask rules to be tightened anytime soon in Massachusetts.

As local jurisdictions across the country – and in Massachusetts – are asking residents to resume wearing masks in indoor public places regardless of their immunization status in response to the nationwide increase in COVID-19 cases fueled by the more contagious Delta variant, Governor Charlie Baker said. Thursday that his administration does not consider such a statewide action.

“No, we are not planning to change any of our existing rules or policies,” Baker told reporters following a press conference Thursday morning in Sandwich.

As of May 29, state rules require unvaccinated people to wear a mask when in crowded or indoor public places, but allow fully vaccinated people to go without a mask except for some places like transit systems and health facilities.

Baker’s comments come after Provincetown and Nantucket issued notices this week strongly recommending that all residents and visitors wear masks indoors, as Cape Town and the Islands see a peak in cases amid the high tourist season. Nantucket officials noted that the Delta variant showed a “great ability” to infect even a vaccinated individual, most likely due to “prolonged exposure, indoors and at high concentrations.”

Baker reiterated Thursday that it was “appropriate” for local communities to take more aggressive action in response to local outbreaks, but that this did not require a statewide policy change.

“We have a statewide set of standards, and they’re based on what we see statewide,” the governor said.

After recording an average of less than 70 new cases of COVID-19 per day in June, Massachusetts reported 457 new confirmed infections on Wednesday and has an average of 244 new cases per day. According to data released Thursday by Axios, the state recorded the fifth percentage increase in the number of cases in the country in the past week.

Still, as Baker noted Thursday, hospitalizations, which have increased slightly since early July, remain very low, compared to other states, as well as levels at the height of the pandemic in Massachusetts.

“In Massachusetts, there are states that have COVID case numbers that are 30 and 40 times higher than they are here in Massachusetts – ditto for hospitalizations,” Baker said. “And I think what has to be the rule of thumb here is that people are making decisions based on the current state of affairs with regard to the virus in their states, and we’re in a very different place.” from most other parts of the country. “

Groundbreaking infections have accounted for nearly a third of all recent cases in Massachusetts, which health officials say is somewhat expected given the state’s high vaccination rate. What’s more, more than 90 percent of breakthrough infections statewide have been relatively mild (involving no hospitalization or death), which officials say is evidence of the vaccines’ effectiveness.

Nationally, with more than 57% of eligible Americans fully vaccinated, more than 99% of recent deaths from COVID-19 have been in unvaccinated people.

Baker noted that Massachusetts is only second behind Vermont for the highest vaccination rate in the country and “one mile” ahead of the other major states. Still, he urged unvaccinated residents to get vaccinated.

“The vaccines are extremely effective,” he said. “If you look at the number of people hospitalized who have been vaccinated, it’s a very small number. And not just here in the Commonwealth but across the country, the difference between the impact of COVID on those who are vaccinated and those who are not is stark and profound. “