City Of Cupertino Order Requires Public To Wear Face Coverings

Press release from the City of Cupertino:

April 23, 2020

The City of Cupertino has issued an Emergency Order requiring the use of face coverings for everyone when working or obtaining essential goods and services outside of their homes as an additional measure to stop the spread of COVID-19. The Order goes into effect on Friday, April 24 at noon and currently has no end date.

“The wearing of face coverings outside our homes will become increasingly important to everyone’s health and safety as the economy is reopened and people begin to congregate again in public,” said City Manager Deborah L. Feng. “I have signed this Order to normalize the wearing of face coverings outside our homes. The use of face coverings, along with proper social distancing and other evidence-based health measures, has been shown to slow the spread of COVID-19.”

The Order mandates that all persons in the City of Cupertino shall wear face coverings outside of their homes when working or obtaining essential goods and services. Face coverings can be a scarf or bandana; a neck gaiter; a homemade covering made from a t-shirt, sweatshirt, or towel, held on with rubber bands or otherwise; or a mask, which need not be medical grade.

All persons, including non-medical Essential Workers, are discouraged from using personal protective equipment, such as N-95 respirators or surgical masks, for non-medical reasons. Per CDC guidelines, surgical masks and N-95 respirators are critical supplies that must continue to be reserved for healthcare workers and other medical first responders.

“Cupertino residents, retail and service workers, and City employees are all at risk for contracting COVID-19,” said Mayor Steven Scharf. “Even though the rate of increase in infections is slowing, the number of infections and deaths are continuing to rise. Individuals that are asymptomatic can unknowingly spread the disease, especially because asymptomatic individuals are generally not being tested and are unaware that they are infected.

“Thank you for your patience as we continue to navigate through this public health crisis by taking appropriate safety measures. We hope that all residents will voluntarily comply with this order.”

The Order and Frequently Asked Questions regarding it can be found at www.cupertino.org/facecoverings.

This press release was produced by the City of Cupertino. The views expressed here are the author’s own.