Masks Required Again In Prince George's; Delta Variant Spreads

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — The mask mandate is back, Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks announced Thursday. All county residents and visitors 5 and older must wear a face covering in public indoor places, regardless of their vaccination status.

The new order takes effect Sunday at 5 p.m. Some of the affected facilities include:

• Restaurants
• Retailers
• Entertainment venues
• Conference centers
• Office settings

Locals don't need to use a face covering if they are actively eating or drinking. Masks are also not required for Prince Georgians who have a disability that prevents them from wearing one.

"We are now at a point where we must reinstitute an indoor public mask mandate to keep Prince Georgians safe," Alsobrooks said in a press release. "The spread of the new Delta variant shows that we can only get out of this pandemic by getting more people vaccinated."

The face-covering rule follows updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as the highly contagious delta variant spreads across the country. The CDC on July 27 urged residents, whether inoculated or not, to mask up "in public indoor settings in areas of substantial or high transmission."

Prince George's County falls into the substantial category, CDC data indicated. Locals can track transmission levels at this link.

"Every COVID-19 vaccine available in Prince George’s County has been proven to be extremely safe and extremely effective at keeping people from getting hospitalized or dying from the virus, including its Delta variant," stated Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Dr. George Askew. "The vast majority of people in Prince George’s County who have died or been hospitalized over the last few weeks due to COVID were unvaccinated."

As of Sunday, Prince George's County had:

• A positivity rate of 4.6 percent, which is up from 0.9 percent on July 5
• A case rate of 11 new infections per day per 100,000 residents, which is the highest since May 5

As of July 28, the county had an infection rate of 1.33. That places Prince George's in the "high risk" range.

"The science is clear that the vaccines work," Askew concluded. "If more people are vaccinated, we can finally end this pandemic."

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RELATED:

• Vaccine Or Tests Required For Some MD Workers: Hogan
• Masks Required For Prince George's Co. Public Schools This Fall

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