County extends mask rule on public transit
LOS ANGELES (CNS) — With COVID19 case numbers steadily rising — enough to push Los Angeles County into the “medium” virus risk level — the maskwearing requirement on public transit and at transportation hubs was officially extended, Friday, in the county.
The county issued a health order, in late April, requiring masks on transit vehicles and at hubs such as airport and train stations. The requirement, however, was set to expire in a matter of days. The county Department of Public Health announced, Friday, the mandate was being extended for either another 30 days or until the county sees a sharp drop in virus transmission, whichever comes first.
Masks were previously required nationally on public transit and in transportation facilities, but a federal judge struck down the requirement, last month. The county initially followed the ruling and the mandate was dropped locally, but when the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention opted to appeal the ruling, the county issued a new health order reinstating the requirement locally.
The requirement affects people on trains, subways, buses, taxis, ride hailing vehicles and at bus terminals, subway stations and indoor port terminals. It also affects airports, but does not extend to airplanes, which are under federal jurisdiction.
The transitmasking requirement extension comes one day after the county moved from the CDC’s “low” community virus activity category to “medium.” The shift came when the county’s cumulative weekly rate of new COVID cases exceeded 200 per 100,000 residents, reaching 202 per 100,000.
Moving to the “medium” category did not trigger any immediate changes in health regulations in the county, which was already maintaining steppedup precautionary recommendations that align with the CDC’s guidelines under the “medium” ranking. Those include requiring masks on public transit and at highrisk settings such as hospitals and homeless shelters, and maintaining widespread availability of vaccines and access to testing, including athome tests.
The county still is not mandating maskwearing in all indoor public settings, but it is being strongly recommended. Masks would become mandatory indoors if the county slips into the “high” COVID level. Reaching that mark would require a sharp increase in COVIDrelated hospitalizations.
Numbers of COVIDpositive patients have been increasing in recent weeks, and the percentage of emergency room visits associated with the virus crept up to 5% over the past week — up from 4% the previous week. But so far, the overall hospital statistics are still well within the CDC’s parameters for the “medium” COVID level.