No Mask Mandate Being Considered In San Mateo County — Yet

SAN MATEO COUNTY, CA — San Mateo County is not considering masking or social distancing mandates at this time as local public health departments grapple with another rise in cases due to the Delta variant.

In a tweet Thursday afternoon, the county’s health department recommended that residents continue masking indoors regardless of vaccination status. Nearly 90 percent of San Mateo County eligible residents have been vaccinated as of Wednesday, and a vast majority of new hospitalizations attributed to COVID-19 have been among the unvaccinated.

Masks are required in county-operated buildings in the county, but the mandate does not apply to businesses, other government agencies or private employers. The county has had to correct misinformation spreading on Twitter about the nature of the mandate.

Related: Masks To Be Required Inside San Mateo County Facilities

No Bay Area county has reinstated an indoor mask mandate yet since most restrictions were lifted June 15, but San Francisco Mayor London Breed signaled Thursday that the city was considering it. Three California counties — Los Angeles, Sacramento and Yolo — currently have indoor mask mandates in place, but their vaccination rates are well below that of San Mateo County.