Bay Area counties reinstate indoor mask mandate

NOVATO, California – San Francisco, Marin, Alameda, Against the coast counties and the city of Berkeley are tightening all their indoor mask mandates.

Starting Thursday at midnight, these counties align with the California Department of Public Health and demanding the wearing of face coverings in all indoor public places to stem the spread of the virus. The new rules remain in effect until at least January 15.

Therefore, all the old local face covering exemptions created for indoor spaces with vaccinated people will no longer apply.

This includes gyms, fitness centers, offices, employee commuter vehicles, religious gatherings, college classes, and similar settings.

The states indoor mask mandate entered into force on December 15.

At that time, several counties had the option of adopting a pre-existing mask ordinance in place of the state ordinance. Marin, Sonoma, San Francisco, Contra Costa, Alameda Counties and the City of Berkeley – have passed local bylaws allowing certain exemptions that are not in state policy.

Restored rules come as California reaches 5 million cases of coronavirus, including the first case of omicron in Marin County on December 17.

Since then, health officials say the average daily number of COVID-19 cases has tripled.

Marin County public health official Dr Matt Willis speaks with a woman at a COVID-19 vaccination clinic earlier this year. Courtesy of Marin County

“When we see numbers like this, it’s time to act,” said Dr. Matt Willis, Marin County public health official. “Mask exemption for certain parameters was a pre-Omicron policy. This variant behaves differently, and the risk of infection in a room full of vaccinated people who are unmasked is much higher now.”

Despite the increase in the number of cases, hospitalization rates for COVID-19 infections have remained stable in Marin County, which health workers say is attributed to the very high vaccination rate in Marin County. Sailor; 92.1% of Marin’s population aged 5 and over have completed a series of COVID-19 vaccines.

In Contra Costa County, the omicron variant was first identified in the county on December 18, and since then case rates and hospitalizations have increased dramatically. The average number of new daily COVID-19 cases has increased 149% over the past week and hospitalizations have increased 31%.

And in Berkeley, the local daily case rate is 23.3 per 100,000 population and increasing, and community transmission in the city of Berkeley is now classified as “high” on the CDC’s COVID-19 data tracker.

“Omicron may be more transmissible, but we have the tools to prevent infection,” said Dr Nicholas Moss, Alameda County health officer. “Because even a mild infection in a vaccinated person can be passed on to someone who could be hospitalized, we need to take every precaution this winter.”