As the nation’s largest county seeks to contain a sustained increase in cases among its 10m population.
Effective July 17, Los Angeles will return to mandatory mask-wearing indoors, even for people who have been vaccinated.
The new public health order in LA follows an earlier recommendation by the county that everyone, regardless of vaccine status, should be wearing masks indoors. It also comes a month after California’s “grand reopening” saw the state roll back its major statewide Covid-19 restrictions.
GTX has been at the forefront of supplying highly effective personal protective equipment and supplies and offers curbside pick up Monday – Friday.
Available inventory on all essential PPE such as masks, gloves, sanitizer, antibody test kits, etc. www.gtxmask.com
New cases surging 10% on last week nationally with several states reaching 50% increase while LA resumes mask-wearing indoors
Read Full Article on The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/jul/15/los-angeles-mask-mandate-coronavirus
Ed Pilkington in New York and agencies@edpilkingtonFri 16 Jul 2021 10.16 EDT
Covid cases are rising in all 50 US states as the highly contagious Delta variant spreads rapidly across the country, news outlets reported on Friday morning, with half the US population yet to be fully vaccinated.
Nationwide, new cases are surging 10% on last week, with several states reaching a 50% increase. Four states – Arkansas, Florida, Missouri, and Nevada – are in the throes of full outbreaks.China and Russia spreading anti-US vaccine misinformation, White House says – as it happenedRead more
On Friday CNN reported that all US states were now experiencing an increase in new cases, more than 18 months into the pandemic.
Data compiled by the New York Times showed that the average rate measured over the past 14 days was rising in all 50 states – varying from a dramatic 373% in Tennessee to 10% in Maine.
And the Johns Hopkins University of Medicine coronavirus resource center has presented data showing cases currently rising in all states except Florida, with noticeable surges in Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri and Nevada.Advertisement
As the prevalence of infection grows, prompting concern yet again for hospital systems, some authorities have begun to impose renewed restrictions.
Los Angeles will return to mandatory mask-wearing indoors, even for people who have been vaccinated, on Saturday as the nation’s largest county seeks to contain a sustained increase in cases among its 10m population.
On Thursday, LA County recorded 1,537 new cases – the largest daily load since early March.
Nearly 400 people were hospitalized with Covid in LA as of Wednesday, up 275 from the week before, and nine new Covid deaths were reported on the same day.
“This is an all-hands-on-deck moment,” LA county’s public health officer, Dr Muntu Davis, said.
The challenge now facing states with relatively low vaccination levels was illustrated by Louisiana, where CNN reported that only 36% of citizens are fully vaccinated. The state is recording almost 2,000 new cases of Covid a day, the highest level in four months.
About 60% of Louisiana’s new cases are accounted for by the Delta variant.
As concern grows that the US might be headed for a further wave of infection with the Delta variant exploiting relatively low rates of vaccination in parts of the country, there is renewed debate over the need for Covid restrictions. Rhode Island this week imposed a requirement on all public and private college and university students that they must be fully vaccinated before returning to campus later this year.
The University of California has also said it will mandate that all students, faculty and staff must be fully vaccinated before returning to its network of campuses at the end of the summer.
Dr Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), told ABC’s Good Morning America that if the current rise remained unchecked some states and cities might consider introducing travel restrictions tied to proof of vaccination. “I think now is our moment to really double down on our vaccination efforts and our other prevention interventions,” she said.
Public health experts have warned that the country remains vulnerable to new more contagious strains of coronavirus because the rate of vaccination has slowed. The latest CDC figures show that 48.3% of the US population has been fully vaccinated, with 55.8% having had at least one dose.
The highly politicised nature of the US Covid response is also bearing down on the crisis. Several Republican-controlled states have introduced bills prohibiting schools and workplaces from enforcing masks.
Other states such as Montana have banned employers from requiring vaccinations from their work forces.
Vaccine hesitancy is running especially high among Americans who identify themselves as Republican voters. A PBS NewsHour/NPR/Marist poll in March found that 41% of Republicans were resistant to getting vaccinated.
The new public health order in LA follows an earlier recommendation by the county that everyone, regardless of vaccine status, should be wearing masks indoors. It also comes a month after California’s “grand reopening” saw the state roll back its major statewide Covid-19 restrictions.
Other California counties and other states are also grappling with a spike in coronavirus cases, led by a surge in the Delta variant and predominantly affecting people who are unvaccinated.
Sacramento and Fresno counties in central California recommended on Thursday that masks be worn indoors even by people who are vaccinated. And health authorities in Austin, Texas, on Thursday urged people who are not vaccinated or are otherwise high-risk to avoid travel, indoor gatherings, dining out and shopping, and to wear masks.
Vaccines decrease the severity of the illness, reduce hospitalizations and decrease the risk of death. And while breakthrough cases have occurred, health experts have said that the available vaccines provide strong protection, including against the known Covid variants.