Sonoma County To Ease Mask Mandate Alongside Most Of Bay Area

SONOMA COUNTY, CA — Sonoma County announced Wednesday it will ease its mask mandate Feb. 16 in alignment with the state of California.

Sonoma is among 11 Bay Area counties — Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Monterey, Napa, San Benito, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, Solano, Sonoma, as well as the City of Berkeley — that will lift universal mask requirements next Wednesday for vaccinated people in most indoor public settings.

Unvaccinated people over age 2 will continue to be required to wear masks in all indoor public settings.

Further, indoor masking will still be required in California for everyone, regardless of vaccination status, on public transportation and in health care settings and congregate settings such as correctional facilities, homeless shelters and long-term care facilities.

The state has indicated adjustments to its policies for K-12 schools will be shared in the coming weeks. For now, California continues to require masking in K-12 schools and for children older than 2 in early education programs, such as preschool and childcare settings. Vaccinations for children under 5 are currently undergoing federal review.

Businesses, venue operators and hosts may determine their own paths forward to protect employees and customers and may choose to require all patrons to wear masks, Sonoma County health officials said Wednesday in a news release.

"The change aligns with the California Department of Public Health’s (CDPH) decision to let expire the statewide indoor mask requirement, which was instated on December 15 during the latest COVID-19 surge," the county said Wednesday in a news release.

By aligning with the state masking rules, the participating Bay Area counties will not need to meet previously established criteria for lifting local masking orders, which were devised at a different point in the pandemic.

"Bay Area health officers, in alignment with CDPH, continue to strongly recommend masks be used as an effective tool to prevent the spread of the virus especially when case rates are high, or when additional personal protection is needed," the county said. "Continuing to mask in indoor public settings, especially crowded or poorly ventilated spaces, remains the safest choice for an individual and protects those who are medically vulnerable or are not able to get vaccinated, like our youngest children. As evidence continues to show, vaccinations and boosters remain the best defense against the virus."

Changes to health orders and recommendations may be updated as local health officers follow the science and the data to evaluate whether additional protective measures may be needed as the virus evolves and if future surges occur.

After reaching a high on Jan. 10 of 248.7 cases per day per 100,000 residents, Sonoma County’s case rates have declined to 77.0 cases as of today. Hospitalizations, a lagging indicator of transmission spread, have also declined and never exceeded local capacity during the surge because of the county’s high overall rates of vaccination (79.4 percent) and boosters (61.6 percent), along with a local health order that temporarily restricted the size of large gatherings to prevent superspreader events during the peak of the surge.

"We have weathered the worst of the omicron surge. But let’s make no mistake: the pandemic is not over,” said Dr. Sundari Mase, Sonoma County’s Health Officer. “COVID-19 is still spreading twice as fast in our community today as it was during the peak of the delta surge last August. As we make this shift toward encouraging everyone to assess their own individual risk, I strongly recommend people who face the greatest risk of illness — our seniors, essential workers and people with underlying health conditions — and the people who care about them to continue to wear their masks indoors in public settings. While wearing a mask indoors is no longer mandatory for people who are vaccinated, it remains a smart and simple way to protect yourself and the people around you."

A combination of preventative strategies, which included mask use, vaccination, boosters and testing, along with the community’s cooperation helped get the Bay Area through this last surge together as a stronger community, the county said.

"Some people may understandably feel anxious about these changes to masking requirements in the county," the county said. "People can continue to choose to wear face coverings around others whether it’s mandated or not and should respect people’s choices around their health. Community members who are vaccinated and choose not to mask should respect the choices of those who continue to mask. Officials ask residents and visitors to be kind and respectful as people evaluate their risks and make choices to protect themselves and those around them."