Oakland County To End Mask Mandate In Schools, Day Cares

OAKLAND COUNTY, MI — Oakland County health officials said Friday the county will lift its requirement to wear masks in schools and daycares on Feb. 28.

"As we see our critical measures of vaccinations, hospital admissions, and cases moving in a direction that tell us the COVID-19 impact on our community is greatly improving, the time is right to remove the mask order for daycares and educational institutions," Health Division Medical Director Dr. Russell Faust said.

Oakland County's COVID-19 test positivity rate has declined nearly 50 percent since Monday, including an 83 percent decline in the seven-day COVID-19 case average since its peak in early January, county health officials said.

Furthermore, hospital admissions in Oakland County for adults have dropped 72 percent since the peak on Jan. 10, as well as a 67 percent decline for children since the highest admissions on Jan. 8, county health officials said.

As of Tuesday, 75.8 percent of Oakland County residents 5 years old and older have received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, according to state health officials. The number is even higher for residents 12 and older with 79.1 percent receiving their first dose while senior residents 65 and older have the highest first dose protection at 92.9 percent.