Even with the mask mandate lifted for vaccinated people, some may opt to keep wearing them until the pandemic is over or for other protection.It helps that half of California, including Los Angeles and most of the counties in the Bay Area, reinstated the mask mandate over the summer in response to the Delta variant and the rise in cases and hospitalizations. But there’s been a big difference between going to a store in L.A.
COVID-19 rates have been rising and it’s unclear right now whether that’s from the new Omicron variant, which appears to be twice as transmissible as Delta. COVID-19 has been spreading so fast atin New York that the school is going to remote learning and canceling athletics. Evidence of the Omicron variant was found in a significant number of the cases, the university announced.
In the absence of clear knowledge about the threat of Omicron, the smart thing to do is act with caution — not with panic. And that’s exactly what this new mask mandate does. No stores need to close, no activities need to be halted. The mandate is temporary for now, lasting one month. Californians are being told to mask up through the holidays, when more people shop and get together and go out to restaurants — and thus are more likely to be exposed to the virus and expose others to it.
By the time the month is over, we should know a lot more about what kind of threat Omicron presents. In the meantime, mask wearing has reduced the incidence of regular colds, flu and bronchitis during the worst of the pandemic. Thesays masks played a role in slowing the transmission of those other diseases, and the common cold and other familiar respiratory illnesses returned when masks came off.
It’s disappointing that the world hasn’t managed to crush COVID-19 nearly out of existence, and the return to masks is a dispiriting reminder of that. We’ve learned so much and are living so much better today than 20 months ago. But this is a battle where we cannot yet claim a victory. For now, wearing a mask is not a terrible imposition on our quality of life. Even better — get fully vaccinated.
opinion The never-ending corporate media propaganda machine
opinion Nobody is distancing anymore. Hardly anyone wears the mask unless going into a business. Lockdowns were soft at best and less so now. People just wear it so they wo t hear it from someone power tripping at the door.
opinion The mask dictate never makes sense. No statistical proof it actually works.
opinion REPORT VACCINE INJURIES.
opinion It makes sense for everyone. Why not work together to stop this pandemic? It’s such a small thing to do.
opinion The problem hasn’t been the masks, it’s been the message & the method. We’ve given up distancing. We’ve abandoned limits. We won’t require vaccines. But we bring back masks and think that will get us out of the issue? That won’t make people doubt vaccines? It’s poorly planned.
morgfair opinion Because your useless state has done this 24 months and it STILL hasn't worked.
opinion Wear a damn mask and get the shots!
opinion The anti mask crowd in these comments:
opinion Masks offer about as much protection from an airborne virus as a child’s security blanket does protection from an armed intruder. Regardless, some people at the LA Times apparently still need their “bankie” to feel safe.
opinion I will agree once ANYONE shares with me the SCIENCE that supports the theory that masks slow the spread. Just show me that data and the science behind it, then I will agree. Not Fauci says so, not Newsom saying we are following science and then not sharing it….
opinion WearADamnMask
opinion makes about as much sense as this math.
opinion
opinion like florida?
opinion It really doesn't, but good look with having the same rates as everywhere else!
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