Masks mandate reinstated in San Francisco Bay Space amid surge – WPRI.com

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – San Francisco and six other Bay Area counties announced Monday that they are reintroducing a mask mandate for all indoor public spaces as COVID-19 infections increase due to the highly contagious Delta variant.

The new mandate applies to everyone, regardless of their vaccination status, and goes into effect Tuesday in the counties of San Francisco, Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Sonoma, as well as in the city of Berkeley.

At a press conference announcing the new orders, Bay Areafor health officials also recommended that people gather outdoors when they have the opportunity.

“It is unfortunate that we have to do this at this point in the pandemic. Neither of us wanted to be here, ”said Dr. George Han, assistant health officer for Santa Clara County. “But the virus has changed.”

The Delta variant accounts for 95% of the new coronavirus cases in the area, said Sundari Mase, the interim health officer for Sonoma County north of San Francisco.

“We’re facing a lot more aggressive and contagious opponent right now,” she said.

The vast majority of new cases and hospital admissions involve unvaccinated people, but the Bay Area’s mandate affects all people as the number of people who test positive and evidence that vaccinated people can transmit the virus has increased.

Mase and the other health officials said the relatively small number of vaccinated people now being hospitalized are mostly elderly or those with significant underlying medical conditions.

In line with guidelines from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, California last week recommended that everyone wear masks indoors regardless of vaccination status, but officials have stopped asking.

In the Los Angeles, Yolo and Sacramento counties, mask requirements are already in place for interiors. In a major retreat in the deep south, Louisiana also reintroduced a mask mandate on Monday, with one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country, and goes a step further to include schools and colleges.

San Francisco Bay Area health officials were the first in the country to announce a shutdown at the start of the pandemic in March 2020.

Taken together, the region leads the state in vaccination rates, with over 60% of residents being fully vaccinated. Marin County, north of San Francisco, has the highest rate, with about 73% of the population being vaccinated.

California has seen a steady surge in virus cases since the state closed its economy on Jan.

Bay Area health officials said they took action Monday over the worrying number of hospital admissions and would consider easing the new restrictions if those rates drop.

“We are alarmed at the rate at which COVID patients are filling our hospital beds,” said Chris Farnitano, health officer for Contra Costa County, where the number of hospital patients has doubled and increased by more than 400% in the past 10 days. in July.

He urged unvaccinated people to get the syringes and said indoor gatherings are the highest risk of the virus spreading.

“If you are not vaccinated, I would strongly advise against higher risk indoor activities – such as eating in an indoor restaurant, exercising in a gym, or going to the movies,” said Farnitano.

Eating indoors is still allowed, although people must wear masks when they are not eating or drinking.

In other public establishments such as gyms and movie theaters, face covering must be worn, although enforcement varies by location.

In Santa Clara County, businesses must enforce the mask mandate and residents can file complaints on the Department of Health’s website, Han said.

In the city of Berkeley, which is in Alameda County but has its own health department, the new regulation requires companies to put up signs indicating that masks are required indoors, said Lisa Hernandez, the city’s health officer.

San Francisco does not plan to enforce its new order, but will rely on residents’ tendency to “follow science and data,” said Naveena Bobba, the city’s assistant health director.

Healthcare company Kaiser Permanente joined forces with other U.S. employers and health officials on Monday to make COVID-19 vaccines mandatory for an estimated 239,000 employees and doctors.

The Oakland-based health and health insurance company said nearly 78% of its employees and more than 95% of doctors are fully vaccinated.

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Associated Press writer Janie Har contributed to this report.