Alameda County to require masks indoors
People in Alameda County will again be required to mask in “most” indoor settings starting today, county health officials said Thursday afternoon.
Alameda County Health Officer Dr. Nicholas Moss signed an order that goes into effect 12:01 a.m. today that will require people to again wear masks in offices, retail stores, restaurants and bars, theaters, family entertainment centers, conference and event centers, and public-facing state and local government offices.
Kids in K-12 schools will be exempt from the order and won't be required to wear masks for the remainder of this school year. People performing in live events — in theater, musical events and professional sports — as well as those who are exercising or doing water-based sports may remove their masks while performing, the order specifies. People participating in religious rituals can also take off their masks if necessary.
The mandate comes as the number of daily reported COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are on the rise.
Alameda County health officials reported Thursday that the number of reported cases have surpassed the peak of last summer's Delta variant wave, but even those numbers are likely undercounted, because people are home testing and likely not reporting all infections to medical providers or the county health department.
The number of patients being hospitalized with COVID-19 has also “rapidly increased” in recent days, health officials said in a press release Thursday.
“Rising COVID cases in Alameda County are now leading to more people being hospitalized and today'saction reflects the seriousness of the moment,” Moss said in a written statement. “We cannot ignore the data, and we can't predict when this wave may end. Putting our masks back on gives us the best opportunity to limit the impact of a prolonged wave on our communities.”
When the number of reported infections began to rise again in April, county health officials said, they did not see the same disproportionate impact on people of color that was seen in earlier days of the pandemic, but that has also changed.
“We are seeing the same pattern of disproportionate impact on hard hit communities play out again with rising cases,” said Kimi Watkins-Tartt, Director of Alameda County's Healthcare Services Agency's Public Health Department, said in a written statement that noted that Hispanic or Latino residents now have the highest case rate in Alameda County among the largest race and ethnicity groups.
“Many Black and Brown residents are frontline workers who can't work from home and are in workplaces where they frequently interact with the public,” Watkins-Tartt said. “A masking order will limit the spread of COVID in these vulnerable communities.”