San Francisco, six other neighboring bay area counties reinstate indoor mask ...

San Francisco, six other neighboring bay area counties reinstate indoor mask ...
San Francisco, six other neighboring bay area counties reinstate indoor mask ...

San Francisco's acting health officer, Dr. Neveena Bobba (pictured) announced, along with health officials from six neighboring counties, an indoor mask mandate, even for the vaccinated, Monday afternoon, making them the latest municipalities to reinstate face covering orders amid a surge in coronavirus cases

San Francisco's acting health officer, Dr. Neveena Bobba (pictured) announced, along with health officials from six neighboring counties, an indoor mask mandate, even for the vaccinated, Monday afternoon, making them the latest municipalities to reinstate face covering orders amid a surge in coronavirus cases  

San Francisco, along with six other neighboring bay area counties have become the latest municipalities in the US to order face coverings in indoor public places, regardless of vaccination status.

The mandates were announced by health officials in San Francisco, Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Sonoma counties Monday afternoon amid a surge in cases driven chiefly by the contagious Indian delta variant. 

'Indoor masking is a temporary measure that will help us deal with the Delta variant, which is causing a sharp increase in cases, and we know increases in hospitalizations and deaths will follow,' San Francisco's acting health officer, Dr. Neveena Bobba, said in a statement. 

The order is an escalation of a recommendation made by the health officials just two weeks ago that all residents wear masks in public indoor settings.

It comes as all seven of the counties have seen spikes in coronavirus cases over the past week, and as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued new guidance last week saying vaccinated people should wear masks indoors to stop the spread of the delta variant.

They are the latest local municipalities in the state to reinstate indoor mask wearing mandates for the vaccinated. On July 29, neighboring Sacramento County reinstated its face covering order, and on July 17 LA County did the same.

For states, Nevada and Louisiana have also announced orders for all residents to wear face coverings indoors. Nevada's took effect on July 30, and Louisiana's is scheduled for Aug. 4, and come as cities across the country have reinstated similar mandates.   

According to the CDC, San Francisco County saw 1,513 additional cases last week, a 47 percent increase over the prior seven days, Contra Costa recorded 2,723 new cases, a 53 percent spike, and Sonoma County's case average increased 58 percent, with 684 new infections. 

The mandates come as all seven counties have seen upticks in infections in recent weeks

The mandates come as all seven counties have seen upticks in infections in recent weeks 

Marin County had a nearly 35 percent spike of 282 cases, Santa Clara saw a 40 percent increase with 1,637 new cases and San Mateo recorded 742 new cases, a 33 percent increase. Meanwhile, Alameda County had 2,385 new cases, a 11 percent jump. 

In San Francisco, hospitalizations have also risen to 69 over the past week, a 38 percent increase, but still below its winter peak. 

The orders in the bay area come after Los Angeles reinstated its own indoor mask mandate on July 17 amid its own surge in infections. Despite that, it continues to see an increase in positivity rates, with LA's seven day moving average increasing by nearly 22 percent, with 19,499 new cases recorded as of Aug. 1. 

San Francisco's case surge comes despite high vaccination rates,  with 69 percent of its total population vaccinated. A bicyclist pictured recently with a face covering in San Francisco's Ferry Building

San Francisco's case surge comes despite high vaccination rates,  with 69 percent of its total population vaccinated. A bicyclist pictured recently with a face covering in San Francisco's Ferry Building 

The surge appears to be driven by the highly contagious Indian delta variant in California, which as of July 21, the latest data available, made up 84 percent of all recorded cases in the state, compared to the month prior, when it made up 53 percent of cases.

Nationwide, the delta variant makes up 82 percent of all recorded cases.

Overall, California recorded 24,439 new cases over the past week.   

The bay area mandates are intended to stem the increase in cases of the contagious Indian delta variant as well as stop the vaccinated with breakthrough infections from further spreading the virus

The bay area mandates are intended to stem the increase in cases of the contagious Indian delta variant as well as stop the vaccinated with breakthrough infections from further spreading the virus 

The surge in cases is despite relatively high vaccination rates. In San Francisco, for instance, 69 percent of its population is fully vaccinated.

The bay area health officials said the masks were intended to halt the spread of the virus in both cases of a breakthrough infection among the vaccinated as well as for the unvaccinated. They urged as many to people to get

read more from dailymail.....

PREV Diddy's on-off girlfriend Yung Miami 'transported pink cocaine for him and was ... trends now
NEXT In news vacuum, rumours and concern swirl over Catherine mogaznewsen