Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Thursday that the indoor mask mandate will be restored within the city over the weekend – regardless of vaccination status.
In her announcement, Bowser said the mandate will go into effect early Saturday morning, July 31, at 5:00 a.m. for everyone older than two years of age.
The mayor’s announcement comes in the wake of President Biden’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) announcement this week that it will backtrack on its previous guidance to recommend individuals, even those vaccinated, mask up in certain settings.
The updated guidance on the CDC’s website states, “To reduce the risk of being infected with the Delta variant and possibly spreading it to others, wear a mask indoors in public if you are in an area of substantial or high transmission.”
The nation’s capital “has experienced a four-fold increase in its daily case rate since the beginning of July,” DC Health said.
During a press conference on Thursday, Bowser made clear this will not affect outside venues as of now. However, fans in attendance should follow the CDC guidance recommending masks in certain settings:
Virginia Democrat Gov. Ralph Northam announced that despite what D.C. requires, “Virginians should consider wearing a mask in public indoor settings where there is increased risk of #COVID19 [Chinese coronavirus] transmission.”
He emphasized, “We know the vaccines work” and “over 98% of #COVID19 hospitalizations and deaths have been among unvaccinated Virginians”:
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