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St. Louis County, Missouri mandates face masks for all people over 5 years of age indoors, regardless of vaccination status amid the spread of the delta variant, announced officials Friday.
Masks are also “strongly encouraged” for outdoor groups.
“We have lost more than 500 residents of Saint-Louis to COVID-19, and if our region does not work together to protect each other, we could see peaks overwhelm our hospital and public health systems,” Dr Fredrick Echols, acting director of health for the city of St. Louis, said Friday.
St. Louis County reported 241 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, raising the 7-day average to 212, which is slightly above the level it was in in mid-April. The county’s average test positivity rate rose to 9.4% over the past week, the highest since late January.
Statewide, cases are also reaching levels not seen since January, with Missouri reporting 2,865 new cases of COVID-19 on Friday, according to a St. Louis Post-Dispatch analysis.
CDC: DELTA VARIANT REPRESENTS 83% OF CASES IN THE UNITED STATES
Dr Faisal Khan, acting director of the St. Louis County Public Health Department, said vaccines are “the best way to stop the rapidly spreading Delta variant of COVID-19.”
“We are continuously committed to making vaccinations more accessible and convenient,” Dr Khan said on Friday. “In the meantime, we need everyone, vaccinated or not, to wear masks in crowded indoor places.”
Just over half, 50.2%, of adults in Missouri are fully vaccinated, while 57.5% have received at least one dose of a vaccine.
Los Angeles County reinstated a mask warrant last week amid rising COVID-19 cases. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Local authorities in other parts of the country with an increase in cases have already reinstated mask warrants.
Los Angeles County officials announced last week that everyone must wear masks indoors, regardless of vaccination status.
Clark County officials announced earlier this week that all Las Vegas employees must wear masks indoors, but have not implemented a mandate for the general public.
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The CDC announced on May 13 that vaccinated Americans no longer had to wear masks, but the push for the Delta variant has caused some local officials to rethink those guidelines.
CDC director Dr Rachel Walensky said this week that her agency’s mask guidelines have not changed, but that “communities and individuals need to make the decisions that are right for them based on what happens. in their local areas. “
“If you are in an area where the case rate is high and vaccination rates low where Delta cases are increasing, you should definitely wear a mask if you are not vaccinated,” Dr Walensky told the House. White Thursday. “If you are vaccinated, you get exceptional protection from the vaccines. But you have the personal choice to add additional layers of protection if you wish.”
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