Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak imposed a new mandate that requires everyone, vaccinated or not, to wear masks indoors in public places in counties with high rates of COVID-19 transmission, including Clark County.
The governor’s directive aligns with a new recommendation earlier in the day from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The directive includes a three-day grace period that gives businesses and residents until 12:01 a.m. Friday to comply.
“Businesses and residents in counties with substantial or high transmission are strongly urged to adopt the changes as soon as possible,” said a news release from the governor’s office.
Citing CDC data, the governor’s office said 12 of Nevada’s 17 counties are currently considered to have substantial or high transmission: Carson, Churchill, Clark, Douglas, Elko, Esmeralda, Lincoln, Lyon, Mineral, Nye, Washoe and White Pine.
The state’s mandate does not apply to participants in certain activities or events, including athletes, performers and musicians.
The CDC’s new guidance also recommended universal masking for kindergarten through 12th grade students, teachers and staff, regardless of vaccination status. However, the state directive stops short of immediately making this a requirement for Nevada schools. Instead, during the grace period, conversations will continue with school district leaders centering on “the need to keep our children and educators safe. …” the governor’s office said.
Meanwhile, the Clark County School District announced earlier Tuesday that it would be imposing a mask mandate to align with CDC recommendations.
The mandate comes at a time when cases and hospitalizations have been rapidly climbing, especially in Clark County.The delta variant, a more infectious strain of the coronavirus, accounts for the majority of the new cases in state, which has one of the highest rates of COVID-19 in the country, according to CDC data. New evidence suggests that the delta variant is more likely to infect vaccinated individuals than other strains.
Source: GMB / Review Journal
