I really ask everyone in Orange County to be a little more careful than theyve been moving forward for the next month or two to limit how fast this spreads.. Currently, the OC Fair website recommends masks indoors. Orange County amends face mask mandate with 3-phase plan. Even so, Ghaly said hospitals in several counties with low vaccination rates are still struggling with lots of patients, including parts of Southern California in Riverside, San Bernardino, Mono and Inyo counties. That is literally our only way out.. On March 4, 2020, the Governor of the State of California declared a State of Emergency to exist in California as a result of the threat of COVID-19. Chief of Public Health Services Before joining the Pilot in February 2017, she worked for the Daily Breeze covering the Palos Verdes Peninsula and for the Long Beach Press-Telegram as a general assignment intern. Like This Free Civic News? Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window). Despite this, the UC Irvine campus instituted the indoor mask rule Monday. SAN FRANCISCO -- California's COVID masking rules are changing according to new information from the state's department of public health. Very young children must not wear a mask because of the risk of suffocation. "We're hoping we can avert that, but it does require everyone to be more cautious and to wear a mask indoors," Chinsio-Kwong said. CHIEF OF PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICES, MATTHEW ZAHN, MD Masking in schools has allowed all schools to remain open, they say, and there is no risk of the state shutting down if people wear their masks. Please help us get more people vaccinated. On one side are parents who welcome the safety of masks, especially with COVID-19 spiking again in Southern California and around the country. Still, that mandate comes with a flip-side: School districts in California must offer students who refuse to wear a mask the opportunity to do an independent study program. While fully vaccinated individuals are no longer required to mask indoors, we still recommend that you continue to wear a mask indoors, regardless of your vaccination status, especially those who are at high risk or living with loved ones who have comorbidities or who are immunocompromised or prone to getting sick, she said. For the PDF English version, click here. As case rates jumped in recent weeks, the federal Centers for Disease Control changed its guidance, urging masks indoors for all students and teachers, regardless of their vaccination status. "We have such an overlap in terms of our populations from Los Angeles County and us and other surrounding counties," Zahn said. As of Saturday,. Officials in a couple of states including Oregon have announced plans to get rid of their own school mask mandates. They issued the guidance, and they suddenly put the enforcement on the backs of local school boards, with really no information on what that means.. ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. - Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings on Wednesday announced that he has amended his facial covering executive order. Gavin Newsom's administration announced the new mandate will start Wednesday and last until Jan. 15. If symptoms, other than fever, are not improving, you should continue to isolate through Day 10 or until symptoms are improving. On February 26, 2020, the County of Orange Health Officer and the Chairwoman of the Board of Supervisors declared a Local Health Emergency and Local Emergency, respectively, based on an imminent and proximate threat to public health from the introduction of COVID-19 in Orange County. All employers in Orange County that are subject to Cal/OSHA Standards shall follow applicable Cal/OSHA requirements during COVID-19 Outbreaks. LA County moved Thursday into the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's "high'' virus-activity level, and if it remains that way for two weeks, indoor masking is coming back July 29. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed an executive order blocking schools from mandating face coverings. At an early February council meeting, Anaheim Mayor Harry Sidhu paused a residents public comment period to ask him to put his mask on. This is a mandate from the state that we have to follow., RELATED: Placentia-Yorba Linda school board wants face masks to be optional, Two graduates from Godinez Fundamental High School in Santa Ana Unified School District smile at the camera during their graduation ceremony Friday, June 11, 2011 at Angel Stadium. This was before the CDCissued new guidance for fully vaccinated people, saying that they can be outside without a mask as long as they are not inlarge crowds of strangers. Mandates like this have left many residents in OC angry even at the start of the pandemic. The CDC's updates include the following: An interval of up to 8 weeks between the first and second doses of mRNA vaccines (Pfizer/Comirnaty or Moderna/SpikeVax) may be preferable for some people. State officials are afraid of a repeat of last winter, when the state averaged more than 100 cases per 100,000 people during a monster winter surge of the virus when nearly 20,000 people died during an eight-week period. What Southern California counties lost, gained most people during height of pandemic? All rights reserved, Los Angeles County faces a very likely indoor mask mandate, Post-Prom Fight in Palmdale Ends in Gunfire, 25-Year-Old Makes $200/Hour Without a Bachelor's Degree: I Work Less Than 6 Hours a Day', Hollywood Braces for Possible Writers Strike as Talks Continue, How Much Could You Get in New $725M Facebook Settlement? Right now, health officials said anyone who feels safer wearing a mask should continue to do so especially in public places and indoors, and they encourage folks to get the COVID-19 vaccine or booster if eligible. UPDATE: Orange County Board of Education will sue Newsom over face masks Other parents are frustrated by the mandate, saying they believe masks pose a risk to their child's mental health. Law enforcement is there to help with enforcement, but again, its a very complex situation, she said at last Wednesdays news briefing. Instead, they held their meeting last week outdoors. Thats a good question. That said, this is a critical time where we have a tool that we know has worked and can work.. 2023 FOX Television Stations, Effective immediately: Physical distancing will be reduced from 6-feet to 3-feet in all settings, Fully vaccinated individuals should follow all updated guidelines for facial coverings that were announced by the CDC on Tuesday. At least nine O.C. It's a move residents in some neighboring counties should not expect to see. The governor can do this because California is still operating under an emergency declaration Newsom issued at the beginning of the pandemic. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Daily Pilot e-newspaper: Sunday, April 30, 2023, Newport Beach woman who survived abusive relationship uses her experience to empower others, Laguna Beach High students to install pop-up floral art mural at Promenade on Forest, Vanguard University unveils Patty Arvielo School of Business and Management, Newport to Ensenada Race: 21-year-old sailor hopes for robust winds throughout event, Daily Pilot e-newspaper: Saturday, April 29, 2023, O.C. In light of the recent COVID-19 related guidance and orders by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and the State Public Health Officer, the following Orders and Strong Recommendations shall revise and replace the prior Orders and Strong Recommendations of the County Health Officer that were issued on September 23, 2022. About Voice of OC: Mission | Editorial Policies| Contact Us | Funding| Privacy Policy. The mandate was expected to end on Jan. 15 but when case counts skyrocketed, state officials extended the mandate to Feb. 15. Send us asecure tip. I think there is a potential for the cases to rise, Chinsio-Kwong said, noting a new subvariant of Omicron in Europe. Hospital officials already "have to brace themselves for a very busy season," whether Omicron overcomes Delta or not. In announcing the change on social media Monday, Gov. But (that) doesnt lessen the mandate.. School district officials, including Pulver, say the California Department of Health confused parents on July 13, when it issued two statements about masks at school. If our health care workers get infected and need to take time off, that could also have a big impact on our hospital capacity, Korber said. The new mask mandate will cover everyone else, but state officials on Monday were unclear about how it would be enforced. Los Alamitos Unified School District trustees have also enforced the state mask mandate at their meeting and ended up meeting in an alternate room in January when people at their meeting refused to comply with the requirement. Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings announced that he has amended his facial covering executive order. The state department of public health says that the masking-up "has proven to decrease the rate of infections" and "slow community transmission." "With things moving in the right direction, we are making responsible modifications to COVID-19 prevention measures while also continuing to develop a longer-term action plan for the state.". SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) California is bringing back a rule requiring people to wear masks indoors, a move aimed at containing a new type of the coronavirus as people gather with family and friends during the holidays. "We certainly have seen an increase in cases, but with two+ years into the pandemic, we have more preventive measures to take now that we didnt have in the past. Coronavirus cases have increased by nearly 50 percent since Thanksgiving and have raised "concerns" within the medical community, according to the state health department. Gavin Newsom noted that "cases have decreased 65 percent since the omicron peak.". And Newport Beach City Council members passed a resolution in support of children going maskless at schools last year. There was a slight drop in the positivity rate from 3.4 to 3.2 percent and hospitalizations from 196 to 194, while ICU admissions increased slightly from 59 to 63 per day. She also said its going to be difficult to enforce an indoor mask mandate for unvaccinated people with the new change. "Everybody needs to take their risk factors into account. Orange County residents who are vaccinated can take off their masks in some indoor settings when the two-month statewide, universal indoor mask mandate ends tomorrow. With the burden of COVID-19 disease abating and a large proportion of the population vaccinated, the Governor of the State of California terminated the states COVID-19 State of Emergency on February 28, 2023. According to Chau, between December 8 and December 13, the seven-day average COVID-19 case rate increased from 7.7 to 9.9 per 100,000 people and the average number of daily COVID-19 cases increased from 250 to 322. Chinsio-Kwong said the health care agencys environmental health division has not issued any citations and that enforcement of local and state health orders was really up to law enforcement and state agencies. Since then, some school administrators have asked the Orange County Health Care Agency if their districts can let students on campus if the student wears a face shield instead of a mask, or if the district could simply separate un-masked students from their peers. There will be 3 phases to the updated mask ordinance that will eventually lead to dropping mask-wearing completely in the county. A new group called Let Them Breathe has helped anti-mandate parents express their view to school boards, organizing recent rallies outside Orange Unified and Tustin Unified districts. Please help us spread the word, she said. President Biden signed into law a House bill on April 10 that immediately ended the COVID-19 presidential declaration of national emergency established in March 2020. Mayor Demings says he believes these . We must comply with face masks, and local boards cannot adopt less restrictive measures than what is mandated, said Los Alamitos Unified Superintendent Andrew Pulver. Though Greg Franklin, superintendent of the Tustin Unified School District, agreed that the state created confusion among a lot of people, he doesnt view the current mask rules as dramatically different from last year. As Orange County moves to "high" COVID-19 community transmission, the county's deputy health officer says the region isn't moving toward reinstating an indoor mask mandate. By clicking Sign Up, I confirmthat I have read and agreeto the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. Watch FOX 35 News for the latest updates. The county has logged 199 new coronavirus cases, raising the cumulative count to 317,752 since the pandemic began. California to end mask requirement for high-risk indoor settings, vaccine mandate for health care workers in April. As Los Angeles County faces a very likely indoor mask mandate toward the end of July, many may be wondering where that leaves Orange County and its plans as COVID cases tick up. We're not seeing that," said Jose Arballo, public information officer for the Riverside County Department of Health. The California Supreme Court wasted little time denying a petition from the Orange County Board of Education today that asked the court to overturn the state's mask mandate. Gavin Newsom's mask mandate goes back into play, Orange County's COVID-19 hospitalizations remained relatively stable. Wake County's mandate ends at 5 p.m. Friday. The mask debate isnt unique to California. Contact him at helattar@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @ElattarHosam. And parents who expect a repeat of the virtual instruction that was offered during the height of the pandemic might be disappointed, depending on where their child goes to school. A coalition of Orange County superintendents last Friday, have called on Newsom to announce a criteria for easing school masking requirements, according to the Orange County Department of Education. RELATED: Dont be confused: online schools arent distance learning. The Guidance, effective April 3, 2023 provides recommendations which apply to the following groups: Face Mask Use and Skilled Nursing Facilities. Frankly, I am too, California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said Monday. "At a minimum, we may see the same rise of hospitalizations we saw in August or September, which peaked at 592 patients Aug. 26. The mask mandate in Cumberland County ended Sunday night. They are not the only ones who have rallied against the states school mask mandate. ORANGE COUNTY, CA One day before California Gov. Get Los Angeles's latest local news on crime, entertainment, weather, schools, COVID, cost of living and more. For those at the highest risk, there antiviral treatments available to prevent serious illness.". But in Florida currently experiencing the nations biggest coronavirus surge Gov. Wearing a mask in those high-risk indoor settings will still be recommended. The first phase, which is effective immediately, calls for a change in social distancing from 6 feet to 3 feet . Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's COVID-19 data tracker. Jared Polis of Colorado who told Colorado Public Radio last week that The emergency is over and public health (officials) dont get to tell people what to wear.. Chinsio-Kwong said when people ignore the mandates, medically vulnerable residents end up sick or in the hospital. However, masks are recommended for situations with large crowds or for activities like indoor shopping and salon visits. Driver rescued after car plunges more than 500 feet off NorCal cliff, Authorities continue search for Texas man suspected of killing 5, Lakers, LeBron James to play Warriors, Steph Curry in NBA showdown. Visitors wearing masks at Newport Beach Pier on Thursday. And while some districts, like Tustin Unified and Capistrano Unified, plan to continue the virtual schooling that they offered even before the pandemic, others will cut back on online instruction. We are proactively putting this tool of universal indoor masking in public settings in place to ensure we get through a time of joy and hope without a darker cloud of concern and despair. Ghaly said. We know that theres going to be people who dont necessarily agree with this, who are tired, who arent going to mask, Ghaly said. Some parents are saying uphold the mask mandate. Others are saying dont enforce it., I dont know if well get further guidance, he added. [Read: OC Officials Express Concern Over Death Threat to Public Health Officer Over Mask Order]. But what is most important is what they learn and see on the playground.. Gov. With schools about to re-open and face-to-face instruction set to resume, school officials throughout Orange County are hearing from parents who hold opposing views about a state mandate that requires most students, teachers and staff to wear masks when indoors at a California public school. Back in December, state public health officials announced a one month reinstatement of an indoor mask requirement amid concerns over an Omicron winter surge. We still dont know. The move comes as the omicron-fueled winter surge rapidly. [Read: Mask Mandate Returns to Orange County Wednesday]. That stands in stark contrast to cities like Anaheim, where officials made sure residents wore masks inside the city council meeting chambers. Mask wearing is not required outdoors, Chau says. A list of conditions that increase peoples risk for severe COVID-19 disease can be found here: PerCDPH masking guidance, infected persons should wear a well-fitting mask around others for a total of 10 days, especially in indoor settings. Starting April 3, masks will no longer be required in indoor high-risk and health care settings. (Photo by Michael Kitada, Contributing Photographer), Holding on to her backpack, Reagan May, a second grade student at Linda Vista Magnet Elementary School in Mission Viejo, wears a mask and a decorative face shield as she starts in-person learning on Tuesday, September 29, 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic. Roxana Kopetman is a staff writer at The Orange County Register. After you have ended isolation, if your symptoms recur or worsen, you should test again; if you test positive, you should isolate as stated above. Before the meeting ended, Foley once again urged viewers to get vaccinated, boosted and follow safety precautions as a way to be kind to each other by protecting each other from the virus. Do I need the new COVID-19 booster? But we are also requiring masks for all individuals, during all times, at all indoor activities in schools. We want our children to be healthy. Enforcement is really the crux of it all.. [Read: OC Schools to Follow Mask Mandate as COVID Surges, Some Parents Rally Against Rule]. He said transmission in the community is up due to the highly transmissible omicron subvariants. Its not like we have another choice., Life is full of chances. Thursday. Californias mandate was set back into place mid-December and set for reevaluation Jan. 15. 5 min read. More than 6,500 staff infections at skilled nursing facility have occurred throughout the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. Pursuant to California Health and Safety Code sections 101030, 101470, 120175, and 120130, the County Health Officer for the County of Orange orders and strongly recommends the following: All Orange County residents and persons who work in Orange County, and who fall under one of the following categories, shall obtain the seasonal flu vaccination unless a medical or religious exemption applies: Nothing herein shall be construed as an obligation, on the part of employers, public or private, to require employees obtain the seasonal flu vaccination as a term or condition of employment. Other parents are frustrated by the mandate, saying they believe masks pose a risk to their childs mental health and their ability to learn.