CDC Updates COVID Mask Guidelines: What It Means In Ohio

OHIO — The Biden administration is expected to loosen federal COVID-19 mask guidance Friday as infection rates return to pre-omicron variant levels around the country.

The bottom line of the expected changes: Most Americans will live in areas where federal guidelines say they’re not required to wear masks indoors. In Ohio, all health orders — including the state's mask mandate — were lifted in June 2021.

The Buckeye State saw a surge in COVID-19 cases at the end of 2021 and in early 2022, largely driven by the arrival of the omicron variant. For six weeks, cases and hospitalizations related to the virus have plummeted around Ohio.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention currently recommends that people wear masks in areas with substantial or high transmission — roughly about 95 percent of U.S. counties, according to the latest data. The expected new guidance comes as the virus becomes endemic and the Biden administration focuses on preventing serious illness and death from COVID-19 rather than all instances of infection.

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky tweeted Thursday that the agency is shifting its focus to concentrate on preventing the spread of COVID-19 to minimize the strain on the health care system.

Walensky didn’t say when the announcement would be made, though The Associated Press and other news outlets have cited unnamed sources saying the new recommendations would likely come Friday.

In a White House briefing last week, she said hospital capacity is an “important barometer.”