Boston Will End Indoor Mask Mandate March 5

BOSTON — Starting Saturday, Boston residents will no longer be required to wear a mask while inside most public buildings.

During a public health meeting Tuesday afternoon, Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, Commissioner of Public Health and Executive Director made the recommendation to rescind mandatory face masks for businesses in Boston starting Saturday, March 5, citing improving COVID-19 metrics.

The Board of Health voted unanimously in favor of the March 5 removal date following Dr. Ojikutu's recommendation.

Even though a vote was not required to rescind the mask mandate, one was still initiated during the virtual Zoom meeting, and a unanimous vote in favor of removing masks throughout the city on March 5 ensued.

Earlier Tuesday, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu showed her support of this next step, saying the city was "basically there," considering the city hit all criteria needed to clear the vaccine mandate last month.

Masking will still be required on all public transportation services, including the MBTA, rideshares, airplanes, and their terminals. Health care facilities will continue to uphold a mask mandate.

Boston Public Schools will also continue to require masks for all students and staff, as masking is a policy put in place by the district, Dr. Ojikutu said during the meeting. BPS can determine if they wish to rescind their mask policies at any time.

On Monday, school districts across the Commonwealth dropped their mask mandates for most students, vaccinated or not - except for Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, and Springfield, who all decided to hold off. Several other districts have plans in place to lift their mask mandates on March 7 or March 14.

Wu told Radio Boston that school standards are different from businesses and municipal buildings when it comes to removing the masks.

"Many [schools] are older buildings and lack updated ventilation systems to the type of airflow that would be ideal, especially in this current health situation," said Wu. "So we need to be mindful of the facilities, the physical environment as well as the gaps in vaccinations that still remain for our student populations."