San Diego County Recommends Everyone Wear Face Coverings Indoors

SAN DIEGO, CA — San Diego County recommends that everyone, including vaccinated people, wear face coverings indoors as the contagious delta variant of COVID-19 continues to spread and new deaths are reported.

The county’s Health and Human Services Agency issued its recommendation Wednesday that masks and other coverings be worn in public indoor spaces. Its suggestion followed statewide guidance released Tuesday.

A sharp surge in infections is sweeping the county, the local government agency said.

“Indoor masking, regardless of vaccination status, adds an additional layer of protection and reduces the risk of transmission of COVID-19,” county public health officer Wilma Wooten said in a statement detailing the county's recommendation.

County officials logged 25 COVID-19 deaths in the week from Aug. 18, bringing the total to 3,859. The cumulative number of infections total stands at 327,166, or 35.2 percent of the population. The case rate is 9.3 percent for fully vaccinated people.

Masks are already required for unvaccinated people in public indoor spaces such as stores and restaurants, while everyone must put on a covering at mass transit venues or in settings with groups of young children.

Countywide, about 2.38 million or 85 percent of the population over 12 are partly vaccinated, and 2.09 million or 74.4 percent are fully vaccinated, the county said. It urged anyone without a shot to get one.

The county's guidance does not forecast any new business closures like those in place last year.