San Francisco Loosens Mask Mandate for Gyms, Houses of Worship — Still Required in Stores, Restaurants

San Francisco and Marin counties are slightly loosening mask requirements Friday, more than two months after reinstating the rules. However, heavy restrictions still remain in place.

Beginning Friday, October 15, masks will no longer be required in places of gathering such as gyms and religious services. However, there is a catch: masks are only not required if the group is fewer than 100 people and everyone is vaccinated.

According to San Francisco’s government website, settings include “offices, gyms, and fitness centers, employee commuter vehicles, religious gatherings, and indoor college classes or other organized gatherings of individuals who meet regularly.” Marin County has similar rules.

“People in these settings may remove their masks if the employer or host of the gathering can control access to the setting and verify 100% full vaccination of everyone in the setting,” San Francisco’s website states.

Additionally, the employer is expected to “ensure proper ventilation, no recent COVID-19 outbreaks, and children under 12 and guests are not present, among other safety measures.”

Individuals are still required to wear masks in retail stores and restaurants.

San Francisco Mayor London Breed (D) said in a statement last week:

This is an important step forward for San Francisco, particularly for our downtown, because when I talk to office workers and business leaders one of the things I continue to hear is that they’re anxious to get back to a more normal routine at work where they can interact with their colleagues.

“Our economy is bouncing back, the City feels like it is coming alive again, and this is yet another milestone in our recovery,” she added.

Last month, the mayor was caught partying at the city’s Black Cat nightclub without a mask, effectively violating her own city’s mandates, which required  “almost everyone” to wear a face covering in indoor public areas.

She later responded to the criticism, asserting people “don’t need the fun police” to “micromanage” them.

“We don’t need the fun police to come in and micromanage and tell us what we should or shouldn’t be doing,” she said.

“No. I’m not going to sip and put my mask on, sip and put my mask up, eat and put my mask on,” she added. “While I’m eating and drinking, I’m gonna keep my mask off.”