2023 San Mateo County. By comparison, San Francisco was at 75%. San Mateo Residents Listed Among SMC Death Notices April 18-24, Man Who Broke Into Woman's Apartment Arrested: SMPD, Girl Scouts Enter Final Weekend of 2023 Cookie Season, Peninsula Youth Theatre 'Wind In The Willows' 2023: Center For Performing Arts, Mountain View, Western Ballet's 'Snow White' 2023: Center For Performing Arts, Mountain View, Belmont & Redwood Shores Rotary's Lobster Fest 2023: Belmont, Pocket Opera's 'Albert Herring' 2023: Performing Arts Center, Mountain View, JobTrain's Breakfast of Champions, Special Guest, Dr. Yusef Salaam, Mental Health Matters: A Community Wellness Fair and 5k Run/Walk Event, First Republic Bank Seized, Sold In Fire Sale To JPMorgan, Changing The World, One Electric Truck At A Time, San Mateo Job Listings: See Who's Hiring In The Area, College Of San Mateo: College Of San Mateo Baseball Hold Off Skyline In Battle For Second Place. A sign in the window of a business in Chinatown on Grant Avenue reminds customers of the indoor mask mandate in San Francisco on Aug. 5, 2021. County announces return of indoor mask mandate The current rate is 117 cases per 100,000 people. Alameda County Mask Mandate Returns Check Your County's Rules - KQED The developments in California come as New Jersey and Delaware announced plans Monday to lift the statewide COVID-19 mask requirement in schools next month. To learn more, visit:https://covid19.ca.gov/industry-guidance/#can-open. Eric Ting is SFGATE's politics editor. During a meeting of the county's Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, Louise Rogers, chief of San Mateo County Health, explained her thinking behind COVID becoming endemic. Eric did his undergrad at Pomona College, where he majored in politics and minored in economics. In addition, hospitalizations are falling. Marin County, which is now back in the substantial tier, met all three requirements last week and dropped its mask mandate Monday. On Friday, Marin was the county that's the closest to meeting the requirements, reporting one of the lowest COVID-19 case rates and the highest vaccination rate in the region. San Mateo County Reopening As of June 15, 2021, San Mateo County fully aligns with all state COVID-19 health and safety guidance and has no plans to impose separate guidance. In San Mateo County, 72% of the total population is fully vaccinated, the county health department said. Beginning April 3, the California Department of Public Health "There is still some work to do," Preston Merchant, a spokesperson for San Mateo County Health, wrote in an email. To lift the mask mandate, a county's health officer must determine that COVID-19 hospitalizations are "low and stable. Hazardous Materials Business Plan Program, California Accidental Release Prevention Program (CalARP), Aboveground Petroleum Storage Tank Program. The mask mandate will be lifted when there is evidence of a sustained downward trend in transmission and ICU capacity has recovered.. A week ago, July 14, there were four people hospitalized with COVID-19. Is the Stanley Quencher tumbler worth its TikTok hype? Call Aging & Adult Services Effective April 3, 2023,the updated guidance is intended to provide information that each Californian should consider based on their unique circumstances. Ive heard from residents who have let us, the County Health Department, know that they preferred the mandate to be in place longer, Srinivasan said. What do you want to know about life in Sacramento? Contra Costa, Napa and Sonoma are further away with case rates of 67.97, 65.34 and 57.86, respectively. State-sponsored COVID-19 testing has ended in San Mateo County. Performers are advised by the CDPH to get tested for COVID at least once weekly. Tested guidance. COVID: California To Drop Statewide Mask Rules For - CBS News The mandate was extended through Feb. 15. Currently, four Bay Area counties Marin, San Mateo, Alameda and San Francisco are in the yellow tier. On Feb. 16, San Mateo County followed the California state government order to relax mask mandates. at risk of severe illness of death if they are infected with COVID-19. Guidance for Face Coverings - California Here's what all seven counties said when asked about the future of indoor mask mandates. It will go into effect at 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday. COVID shots are low priority for healthy kids, teens, WHO says. ", Now, with cases and hospitalizations decreasing in the San Francisco, the city's health department said in a statement, "We continue to monitor the cases and hospitalizations and will make decisions on masking requirements based on the data and the science and are consulting with our regional and state partners on next steps.". (1-833-422-4255). This story has been updated to include additional information from the California Department of Public Health on exemptions to the new indoor mask mandate. Masks will also be mandatory for such events. Property owner speaks out. Copyright 2022 Bay City News, Inc. All rights reserved. ", Willis added that mandates would be kept in place if other concerning variants arise, and that his county will be "be approaching this cautiously" as "It's much harder to get control after a surge starts than to prevent it.". medical reasons. "I think we are all hoping for a quick juncture," Stan Houston, owner of Mozart Einstein & Me in Livermore, told KPIX 5. available with or withoutadvance appointments First Bay Area county could lift COVID mask mandate soon - SFGATE Regardless of the COVID-19 community levels, CDPH recommends: There is lower community spread and impact on healthcare system of COVID-19. "I would hope that they follow what the state is doing. dashboard has beenupdated for the final time and will be And while the county plans to align with the state's . Read more here. recommended. 1. County Health Officer Dr. Matt Willis has even assigned an earliest possible date for when the mask mandate can be lifted (Nov. 3), but noted that any case or hospitalization uptick will set that back. Congregate facilityvaccination clinics will Vaccinated individuals no longer need to wear masks in indoor or public spaces, but those who are unvaccinated must continue to wear their masks indoors. "I may be one of the holdouts and let the general public come into my store, elect whether they wear a mask or not. elderly. County Health Officer Dr. Matt Willis has even assigned an earliest possible date for when the mask mandate can be lifted (Nov. 3), but noted that any case or hospitalization uptick will. In early August, seven Bay Area counties San Francisco, San Mateo, Alameda, Santa Clara, Contra Costa, Marin and Sonoma simultaneously issued an indoor mask mandate for all individuals regardless of vaccination status as the more contagious delta variant of COVID-19 started to spread in the region. The county's health department did not provide a threshold for when hospitalizations would be considered sufficiently low, stating, "We don't use a specific threshold for determining when to change the health order, and we can't predict when conditions will permit a change. The legislation was deemed safe, as 93% of the County population is vaccinated and the County is maintaining a low COVID-19 case rate. [However, the customers] who arent wearing a mask anymore are happier. Rapid antigen test kits (home test kits) are also available ", A spokesperson for the county said only, "We continue to assess data about the impact of COVID-19 in San Mateo County and to stress vaccination and the wearing of face coverings as the most effective safety measures to reduce the spread of the disease and prevent serious illness and death. The now extended universal mask mandate will end on Feb. 15. The requirement will end March 12 across the state, and all nine Bay Area counties Alameda . People who are hearing impaired or need to communicate with a person who is hearing impaired are also not subject to the mandate. On March 12, California will also lift the mask mandate in K-12 schools, public transit, healthcare facilities, detention centers and senior care or childcare centers. "Weve talked about following the science as we place new restrictions, and the local mask mandate helped control the fourth wave," he said. To date, County Health has identified 43,444 positive cases of COVID-19 across all of San Mateo County and 584 deaths. establishedcriteriafor lifting local masking orders, providers, such as Kaiser and Sutter, as well as from pharmacies California passed 80,000 pandemic deaths and 8 million confirmed positive cases last week butnew cases, hospitalizations and ICU admissions allcontinued fallingMonday andare projected to keep decliningat a rapid clip. to Default, About the Viral and Rickettsial Disease Lab, CDER Information for Health Professionals, Communicable Disease Emergency Response Program, DCDC Information for Local Health Departments, Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control Branch, VRDL Guidelines for Specimen Collection and Submission for Pathologic Testing, State of CaliforniaHealth and Human Services Agency, en Learn how your comment data is processed. If you have household or social contact with a vulnerable person*, wearing a mask is recommended when indoors with them. Marin County Public Health Director Dr. Matt Willis said the earliest date the mandate could end is Nov. 3, but the county needs to work hard to keep cases down to get there, and if cases and hospitalizations bump up, this date could easily be pushed back. For additional information on the most effective types of masks and ensuring a well-fitted mask for children, individuals should refer to California Department of Public Health (CDPH), please view the This affects about 50% of Californians who are not currently under a county-level mask mandate. appointments are recommended. San Mateo County has followed the state in lifting its indoor mask mandate for vaccinated persons, effective February 16. . such as Walgreens, CVS, and others. Hazardous Materials Business Plan Program, California Accidental Release Prevention Program (CalARP), Aboveground Petroleum Storage Tank Program. By aligning with the state masking rules, the participating Bay To achieve this, authorities are easing cautionary measures so residents can gradually and safely begin the return to pre-pandemic customs. boosters remain widely available at health care providers and Unvaccinated individuals over age 2 will continue to be required to wear masks in all indoor public settings. In neighboring San Mateo County, Health Officer Dr. Scott Morrow emphasized a separate point officials made during the briefing: The mask mandate is intended to curb transmission so that . California mask order exemptions and end date: What to know | San Luis However, junior and Virology Club member Evan Molloy recognizes the benefits of ending the mandate. Cal/OSHA Aerosol Transmissible Diseases (ATD) PDFStandard and should consult those regulations for additional applicable requirements. He is an East Bay native who has a Master's degree in journalism from Stanford University. Willis said Marin's high vaccination rate is helping drive down cases and hospitalizations. We are carefully monitoring the data and will adjust health orders when safe to do so.". The mask mandate for BUSD schools will be in place until the end of the 2021-2022 school year. COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are trending downwards across the San Francisco Bay Area, precipitously so in some counties. On Monday, the county saw a seven-day average of 85 cases per 100,000 people, a considerable drop from the early January peak of 239 cases per 100,000. But certain groups including children ages 5-11 and Black, Latinx and Pacific Islander populations have vaccination rates less than 80 percent.