California Department of Public Health (CDPH) has announced that they will be reinstating the indoor mask mandate, effective December 15th. This mandate is in efforts of curbing the Omicron variant of COVID-19, which has been shown to spread easier than previous COVID-19 variants. Per the CDPH, “Masks are required for all individuals in all indoor public settings, regardless of vaccination status from December 15, 2021 through January 15, 2022 (surgical masks or higher-level respirators are recommended).” This is in contrast to previous mandates which have taken vaccination-status into consideration.

There are several exemptions to this mandate, including:

  • Persons younger than two years old. Very young children must not wear a mask because of the risk of suffocation.
  • Persons with a medical condition, mental health condition, or disability that prevents wearing a mask. This includes persons with a medical condition for whom wearing a mask could obstruct breathing or who are unconscious, incapacitated, or otherwise unable to remove a mask without assistance.
  • Persons who are hearing impaired, or communicating with a person who is hearing impaired, where the ability to see the mouth is essential for communication.
  • Persons for whom wearing a mask would create a risk to the person related to their work, as determined by local, state, or federal regulators or workplace safety guidelines.

To view the full text of the mandate, please click here.

If you have any questions about this mandate, or how it may affect your operations, please reach out to our Member Services Department and we would be glad to assist you.