LAKE COUNTY— A week after the county’s Board of Supervisors recommended indoor mask wearing for all residents and visitors, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reversed its position. It now advises mask wearing for fully vaccinated individuals in public indoor settings and areas with high COVID-19 transmission to avoid spreading the virus. The CDC’s July 27 indoor masking guideline also applies to all who set foot at a school. Masking remains mandatory for unvaccinated individuals.
CDC data shows Lake County falls into the high transmission category. County officials confirm the county’s daily case rate is at 50 per 100,000, the highest in the state. “Lake County’s significant increase in cases is very likely attributable to multiple factors,” according to a county press release.
The start of the surge in infections coincides with the state’s mid-June cancellation of the mask requirement for the fully vaccinated individuals. The press release states: “Including the ineligible (children under age 12), around 42% of Lake County residents have been vaccinated. Although masking is still mandatory in most indoor settings for those that have not been vaccinated, anecdotally, the percentage recently observed without masks in Lake County’s retail establishments and other indoor venues has been higher than 42%.”
With two cases of the aggressive Delta variant documented in the county, public health officials are urging those who have not been vaccinated to get vaccinated, and those who need testing or vaccination to talk with their health care provider. Lake County Acting Public Health Officer Dr. Charlie Evans describes the Delta variant as “containing 1,000 times the viral load of the mother virus.”
Lake County Public Health offers Drive-To COVID-19 testing and vaccination by appointment only. You may call (707) 263-8174 for more information or schedule an appointment for testing or vaccination.
