More Democratic governors are lifting masking requirements as the omicron wave subsides.
The governors, who have been hawkish on maintaining COVID-19 restrictions, are acutely aware that the public is eager to ditch masks and return to a sense of normalcy now that the pandemic has shown signs of calming. They are moving toward the policies of red states that have avoided mandates and restrictions for months even before the omicron wave hit and then subsided. The following is a list of blue states that announced changes to their mandatory mask policies in recent days.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced on Monday that the statewide COVID-19 mask mandate for public indoor places would end on Feb. 15 — but only for those who have been vaccinated. The statewide repeal does not, however, force local governments such as Los Angeles County to lift their own mask mandates. The policy change does not apply to schools, though. Everyone on a K-12 school campus must wear a mask.
Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont said Monday that starting Feb. 28, the state will no longer require widespread masking in schools. Decisions on whether to mandate masks will fall to school districts, he said.
“Connecticut is seeing a dramatic decline in cases caused by the omicron variant, and children over the age of 5 have had the ability to get vaccinated for more than three months now,” Lamont said. “With this in mind, I think we are in a good position to phase out the requirement that masks be worn in all schools statewide and shift the determination on whether to require this to the local level.”
DEMOCRATS EMBRACE ENDING MASK MANDATES
Delaware Gov. John Carney announced on Monday that the state’s universal indoor mask mandate will end on Feb. 11 and that school mask mandates will expire March 31, saying, “We’re in a much better place than we were several weeks ago.” The nearly two-month wait for school mandates to lift was justified by Carney as giving parents time to get their children ages 5 and older vaccinated. Delaware has some of the lowest vaccination rates among children in the United States, with just 30.2% of children ages 5 through 11 having received at least one shot.
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said he will lift the statewide mask mandate starting on Feb. 28. However, Wednesday’s announcement does not apply to “the sensitive locations” of K-12 public schools.
“We’re better than all of the states around us at keeping people healthy and safe and certainly out of the hospital during this last omicron wave, in part because people wear their masks,” Pritzker said Wednesday.
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican, announced on Wednesday that mandatory masking in schools would end on Feb. 28, when the mandate is set to expire. State school officials arrived at the decision after consulting with infectious disease physicians, the state Department of Public Health, and other medical experts, according to WBUR reporting.
“With Massachusetts a national leader in vaccinating kids, combined with our robust testing programs, it is time to lift the mask mandate in schools and give students and staff a sense of normalcy after dealing with enormous challenges over the past two years,” Baker said. “We have all the tools to keep schools safe as we move into dealing with the next phase of managing COVID.”
Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak announced on Thursday he would lift the statewide mask mandate effective immediately amid a rapidly declining rate of new COVID-19 cases. Teachers and students also will no longer have to wear masks. Individual businesses that wish to keep requiring masks are permitted to do so.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy set March 7 as the expiration date for mandatory masking in schools and day care centers. Local districts and day care centers will retain the authority to keep their mask mandates in place if they want.
“Given the continued drop in new cases and hospitalizations, projections indicating a continued decline over the coming weeks, and the continued growth of vaccinations for our school-aged population, we believe that we can responsibly end the universal mask mandate,” Murphy said on Monday.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul will drop the statewide indoor mask mandate that required restaurants, offices, and other businesses to require face coverings when it was not possible to know if everyone was vaccinated. The rule, which was announced in December, will be lifted as of Thursday. The state has not made a decision yet on whether to lift the mask mandate in schools, which is set to expire in two weeks.
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Oregon state health officials said Monday that indoor mask requirements in public places and schools would end on March 31. The state kept open the possibility of lifting the mandate earlier than late March if hospitalizations in the state decline to about 400 patients being treated at once before then.
“We should see COVID-19 hospitalizations drop by the end of March because so many Oregonians are wearing masks and taking other steps to protect themselves and each other, such as getting a booster shot or vaccinating their children. At that point, it will be safer to lift mask requirements,” state epidemiologist Dean Sidelinger said.
Rhode Island Gov. Daniel McKee announced that he would lift the state order requiring proof of vaccination or a mask in most indoor places effective Friday. The state will maintain its mask mandate for schools for now, but it is set to expire March 4, provided the state General Assembly approves a 45-day extension of McKee’s pandemic emergency powers.
“We’ve made considerable progress against COVID-19 and the recent surge, and we are in a much better place than we were in early January,” McKee said.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee announced the state’s outdoor mask mandate for large gatherings, which requires those at events with 500 or more people to masks regardless of vaccination status, will expire on Feb. 18. Inslee has not given an expiration date for the statewide indoor mask mandate but said last week the “day is coming” when the state no longer needs one.
Washington, D.C., will lift its indoor mask mandate March 1, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced. Businesses such as restaurants and gyms will no longer need to ask people for proof of vaccination to gain entry starting Feb. 15. Masks will still be mandatory in several places, such as schools, nursing homes, libraries, and public transit.
“We also know that people who have been vaccinated and others are wanting to get back to their normal lives and know what they need to do to keep themselves safe,” Bowser said.
