Hartford, Bridgeport Requiring Masks At All Indoor Establishments

CONNECTICUT — Hartford and Bridgeport are joining Stamford and New Haven this week in requiring masks at all indoor establishments due to the continued spread of the highly contagious delta variant of the coronavirus.

Masks will be required at indoor facilities regardless of vaccination status. The Hartford and Bridgeport mandates take effect at midnight Wednesday, while Stamford's requirement takes effect at 8 a.m. Thursday. New Haven's mask mandate took effect on Monday.

Last week, Gov. Ned Lamont gave municipalities the choice of deciding whether to require masks.

And on Tuesday, Norwalk also announced it would require masks indoors, regardless of vaccination status, beginning at 12:01 a.m. Friday.

"We can’t afford to take a step back to closures or capacity mandates - but we can use better judgement and make an easy adjustment to our own behaviors by simply getting vaccinated, and return to putting on a mask," Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim said in a statement. "The masks will help in any situation for those that are vaccinated, not vaccinated, individuals that are vulnerable, and specially to help stop this virus from spreading to a child that is not eligible for the vaccine."

Hartford and New Haven counties were designated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention designated as having a "high" rate of community transmission of COVID-19. The rest of the state falls under "substantial" category of community transmission, which is one notch below high.

According to Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin, the city's COVID-19 case rate has doubled in the past week, which prompted the new requirement to stop the spread of the virus, reported WTNH-TV.

"We're instituting a mask mandate tonight to slow the spread as we continue our vaccination efforts, and we'll assess this mandate on an ongoing basis over the next few weeks," Bronin said in a statement.

The Hartford mask mandate does not apply to children under the age of 2; people with relevant medical conditions; people who are alone in a space where there are partitions separating them from others; or when eating or drinking, reported NBC Connecticut.

In Bridgeport, the mandate does not apply to parks, but the city recommends people wear them there, especially during gatherings.

Stamford Mayor David Martin is also ordering people to wear masks at all outdoor gatherings of more than 100 people in city-owned parks and facilities.

"Getting more people vaccinated will help us beat this pandemic," said Norwalk Mayor Harry Rilling. "I encourage those eligible to get vaccinated as soon as possible. Let's all double down on our efforts to stop the spread of this virus and keep each other safe. If you are eligible, please get vaccinated as soon as possible."