COBB COUNTY, GA — Cobb County officials lifted the mask mandate in county-owned buildings on Monday following new guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the COVID-19 emergency declaration is set to expire this week.
The mask mandate applied to all government buildings, including libraries, senior centers and indoor parks facilities. It doesn't affect the court system, which is operating under a separate judicial order.
County Manager Jackie McMorris implemented the mandate in December, and it's remained in place since.
But the CDC and the Biden administration loosened federal mask guidelines Friday, recommending masks for all only in high-risk counties.
The new framework categorizes counties by "low," "medium" or "high" risk. The Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention isn't recommending mask-wearing in the first two categories, except among people who have underlying health conditions that put them at high risk for COVID-19.
In schools, masking is only recommended in counties with a high risk of infection.
The CDC previously recommended that people wear masks in areas with substantial or high transmission — roughly 95 percent of U.S. counties, according to the latest data. The new guidance comes as the virus becomes endemic and the Biden administration focuses on preventing serious illness and death from COVID-19 rather than all instances of infection.
This new guidance prompted the lifting of Cobb's mask mandate.
A COVID-19 emergency declaration was extended for a second time in February and is set to expire March 19, but in a newsletter Monday, the county said it is "expected to be terminated this week based on the continuing trend of lower transmission rates in the county."
According to Cobb and Douglas Public Health data, Cobb County's 14-day average of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents is at 186, a decline from the previous week at over 200 cases per 100,000 residents. CDPH officials said an average of 100 cases per 100,000 residents is considered high community transmission.
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