Boulder County Public Health Service Revives Indoor Mask Obligation – Denver Post

Due to the high prevalence of coronavirus in Boulder County, it will soon be necessary to wear a mask indoors.

Boulder County Public Health is also working on a new program that encourages businesses to revive their vaccination policies by allowing them to obtain an exemption from mask mandates if vaccination policies are in place. increase.

The new public health order, unanimously approved by the Boulder County Health Commission on Thursday, will come into effect on Friday at 5 pm. Masks are required in public indoor spaces and office settings, but not at home.

The new Voluntary Complete Immunization Facility Program will not begin accepting applications until the end of September as the county’s public health organization continues to reveal details.

There are several exemptions from mask obligations, such as those who cannot wear masks for medical purposes, those who are actively eating and drinking, and those who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Members of the Health Commission strongly supported this order. It follows guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and recommends mask mandates for high or significant counties.

According to data presented Thursday, the county currently has an incidence of 136.42 per 100,000 people.

“Our current cases are higher than at the same time last year,” said BCPH epidemiologist Michael Wu. “If another surge occurs this fall, we’re already starting at a higher baseline.”

“We need to take some additional action,” agreed with Health Commission Chairman Greg Thomas.

Despite unanimous support, there were some concerns about how effective the mission was.

Board member Brooke Harrison said he was particularly grateful for the idea of ​​supporting the public health order and encouraging vaccination.

“But I’m still skeptical,” she said. “I suspect that unvaccinated people will wear masks, and I’m a little skeptical that it will stop spreading rapidly, especially if the counties around us don’t do that either. Is the target. “

The Boulder County Public Health Service withdrew its mask obligations in May. Around that time, it followed a lawsuit with the state that adopted new mask rules that eliminated the need for residents to wear masks in most public places.

However, due to the recent increase in cases due to delta variants, BCPH has begun recommending people to wear masks indoors and has now opted to take that recommendation one step further.

Thomas was worried about the timing as the new public health order was set to come into effect within 24 hours of Thursday’s special meeting.

However, county deputy lawyer Trina Ruhland confirmed that the executive team would not impose penalties unless the company actively opposed the new public health order. She said the executive team would issue a warning and give businesses and people time to adapt to changing situations.

Entertainment concerns

In public comments at a special conference, David Weingarden, vice president of Z2 Entertainment, which runs Fox and Boulder theaters, argued that Maskman Date could be harmful to the various businesses he runs.

“We were at zero dollars for 15 months,” he said, emphasizing how difficult the pandemic was for the entertainment industry.

Wayne Galden later added that the venue already needed a vaccine proof or a negative COVID-19 test for those who wanted to attend the show.

Z2 CEO Cheryl Liguori agreed and expressed further concern about the wording in the order in which the mask could be lowered when seated at the facility.

The Health Commission has chosen to add provisions that allow the mask to be lowered when seated in the facility or when actively eating and drinking. Board members agreed that the move was partly intended to protect music venues where people are served drinks but are primarily in a position to consume them.