Pennsylvania ended its statewide mask mandate on Monday, over 14 months after Democrat Governor Tom Wolf forced the masking of citizens by executive order.
Officials in Pennsylvania’s Bradford County said that local COVID-19 cases have been declining consistently in the past few months after spiking prior.
“As a whole, cases in Bradford County have been really tapering down over the last three to four weeks. The last update I got from the Department of Health this morning says that we only have 24 active cases during the last 14 days,” Matthew Williams, director of planning and public safety for Bradford County, said. “I think as long as folks adhere to some common-sense guidelines, like washing your hands, we should be okay.”
The Pennsylvania Department of Health reportedly no longer requires unvaccinated people to wear masks in public. This does, however, include various exceptions such as businesses, health care facilities, prisons, and other establishments that may require them.
The United States Center for Disease Control similarly continues to mandate masks on planes, trains, buses, and public transportation hubs.
Fully vaccinated people were allowed to not wear masks in most circumstances just last month, with the policy now extended to those who do not have the shot.
“All of the restrictions had been removed, aside from the mask mandate for those who had not been vaccinated. To our knowledge, that restriction has been lifted in its entirety today. Most of the other emergency restrictions in Pennsylvania were lifted, either by the Governor or with the joint resolution passed by the Pennsylvania Legislature, a couple of weeks ago,” Williams continued.
According to government data, about 60% of all Pennsylvania adults have been fully vaccinated for COVID-19, with an even greater percentage of the total population having received at least one dose.
Pennsylvania has been seeing far fewer COVID-19 cases deaths as of late. Per AP, “according to Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering. Deaths attributed to COVID-19 have also dropped off, averaging about 12 per day over the past seven days.”
