Medford Enacts Indoor Mask Mandate

MEDFORD, MA — The Board of Health unanimously approved an order requiring masks inside all indoor public facilities in Medford at its meeting Tuesday. The order will take effect at 12:01 a.m. on Sept. 10 and be re-evaluated at the Board's next regular monthly meeting.

The Board cited public health data, which showed a "substantial" increase in positive cases from June to August. Cases increased by more than 800 percent during that period, and only a week into September, the city has confirmed more than 60 cases, health officials said.

“The data we’ve been reviewing has made it clear that new mitigation efforts must be taken to slow the spread of the Delta variant and keep the people of Medford safe," Medford Board of Health Director MaryAnn O’Connor said. "I’m glad the board agreed with this recommendation and swiftly enacted the mask order."

Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn wrote a letter in support of the order to board members Dr. David S. Pladziewicz, Dr. David Menon and Registered Nurse Kathleen Charbonnier, echoing O'Connor's concern for the rise of cases and the risk the virus poses to the unvaccinated, especially school-aged children.

"With students returning to our elementary and secondary schools, as well as Tufts University, and our desire to do all we can to keep them there, the time has come to re-institute these important mitigation measures so that we may do all we can to ensure they remain in school," Lungo-Koehn wrote.

The order applies to all indoor public facilities, including restaurants and bars – diners do not have to wear a mask while seated – offices, indoor performance and event venues, common areas of hotels, salons, dance studios and places of worship. Vaccinated people frequenting gyms and health facilities do not have to wear a mask if they are able to socially distance.

"As with all measures that we have taken so far, these measures seek a careful balance between the primary need to protect the public from the virus and the need to protect our local economy from overly burdensome regulations that could jeopardize businesses," Lungo-Koehn added. "This order does just that."

For more info on the city's mask policy, visit medfordma.org/coronavirus-information. Read the mask order here.