Los Angeles County reached a “high” level of COVID-19 infections on Thursday, according to public health officials, meaning the mask mandate could be enforced in two weeks because the highly transmissible Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA .5 are making waves around the world country.
The health department based its decision on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s three-tiered criteria for high, moderate or low levels of COVID-19 levels in the community.
Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer expressed concern to reporters Thursday about the new infections, saying “we have a lot of transmission right now” and emphasizing her position on masking.
Dr. Barbara Ferrer, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, at a 2021 COVID-19 testing site. (Gennaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
“The best way to manage uncertainty and reduce morbidity and mortality is to remain open to using both the advanced tools we have now – our tests, our vaccines, our therapeutics – and non-pharmaceutical strategies – masking, ventilation and distancing – to layer on the protections to be eligible,” Ferrer said during the briefing.
“Reasonable precautions that can slow the spread of the virus are warranted, and that includes universal masking indoors,” she said.
Ferrer told the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday and reiterated Thursday that an indoor mask mandate will be imposed unless there is a significant reversal in current hospitalization rates caused by the coronavirus in the next two weeks.
This means that the mandate will take effect by July 29.
To “reverse course,” Ferrer said the county would have to fall below the “high” level of infection, but said that was unlikely to happen before the mandate. The last time the zone required a face covering was in March.
A sign at the entrance of a store in Los Angeles in July 2021 (Chris Delmas/AFP via Getty Images)
The pending decision will automatically go into effect if the rate of daily COVID-positive patients admitted to area hospitals remains at or above 10 per 100,000 residents, the CDC’s threshold for the “high” category.
Earlier this week, Los Angeles County reported a hospitalization rate of about 8.8 per 100,000 residents, which is categorized as “moderate.” The number of infections and hospital visits has steadily increased since mid-May.
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If the mandate does go into effect, it would expire two weeks later, Ferrer said, but the numbers would have to return to an “average” rating.
“I understand that when we go back to universal masking indoors to reduce widespread exposure, it will feel like a step backwards for many,” Ferrer said. But she added that masking “makes a lot of sense because it helps us reduce the risks.”
As of July 13, the health department reported 6,530 new cases of COVID, 15 new deaths and 1,170 ongoing hospitalizations.
A doctor examines a patient with COVID-19 at Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center in Tarzana, California, in September 2021 (Apu Gomes/AFP via Getty Images)
This week, top US health officials issued a warning about the new Omicron subvariants, but also said the country has the tools to prevent people from getting seriously ill. This includes vaccines and antiviral treatments.
“We know how to manage it,” Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House’s response coordinator for COVID-19, said at a virtual press briefing. “We can prevent serious illness. We can save lives and we can minimize the disruption caused by COVID-19.”
The BA.5 subvariant accounts for the majority of new COVID cases, 65% in the United States, according to the CDC.
But the death rate remains low in Los Angeles, with the number of patients in intensive care units at about 115, according to data from the LA Times last updated on Tuesday.
Commuters at Union Station on Tuesday in Los Angeles. (Irrfan Khan/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
The possibility of a mask mandate in L.A. comes months after Philadelphia tried to impose one — and quickly overturned it.
Philadelphia officials implemented a mandate in April amid a sharp spike in infections, but there was fierce opposition and even legal efforts to end the mandate, which the city did just days after it was enacted.
The city abandoned it, but Philadelphia Health Commissioner Cheryl Bettigol said the city’s response level system and the mandate announcement did their job in getting people to increase their awareness and precautions. The jump declined significantly during the week of the mandate.
Ferrer said he understands many will see it as unnecessary because of powerful vaccines and therapeutics, but said it’s a mutating virus with a lot of uncertainty.
Additionally, the CDC states that “multi-layered prevention strategies—such as keeping up-to-date on vaccines and wearing masks—can help prevent severe illness and reduce the potential for strain on the health care system.”
Merline Jimenez administers a swab for a COVID-19 test at Los Angeles International Airport in December 2021. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Ferrer said the Los Angeles County mandate on July 29 will expand “to include all indoor spaces, including shared office spaces, manufacturing facilities, retail stores and indoor events. Indoor areas of restaurants and bars, children’s programs and educational facilities will also have to implement universal indoor masking. As a reminder, masks will not be required for persons under 2 years of age and those using outdoor spaces where the risk of transmission is significantly lower than indoors. Masks will also not be required indoors for those actively eating or drinking.
Los Angeles health officials also reiterated that the actual number of new infections is not fully reflected in the daily numbers, with many people taking tests at home, the results of which are not always reported to the county.
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