Gov. Kevin Stitt urged Oklahomans to wear masks in public, but declined calls for a state term. Local mask mandates in the state`s largest cities, Oklahoma City and Tulsa, ended on April 30 and May 1, respectively. Gov. Roy Cooper ended the blanket mask requirement in the state on May 14. Face coverings are still mandatory nationwide in schools, daycares, children`s camps, and facilities designated by the CDC to continue wearing masks, such as hospitals and transit centers. If wearing a mask is mandatory, children under 5 years old are exempt. The city of Raleigh and counties where Charlotte, Durham, Fayetteville, Greensboro and Asheville live have introduced mandatory masks for vaccinated and unvaccinated people. Governor Asa Hutchinson lifted his 8-month-old mask requirement on September 31.
March and said the state had met the COVID-19 case count targets set a few weeks earlier as the basis for lifting the order. Health officials continue to recommend that Arkansans wear masks in public if they are unable to maintain a 6-foot distance from people outside their household. A state law passed in April prohibits local governments from imposing mask orders, but enforcement is suspended pending a court ruling. Parents who have filed a lawsuit have argued that they should be allowed to make decisions about their children`s health care, saying children are sometimes dizzy when wearing masks. The infection rate among children is low, making mandatory masks unnecessary, they said. Governor Ralph Northam`s order to end statewide COVID-19 restrictions went into effect on September 28. It went into effect two weeks after effectively repealing Virginia`s universal mask mandate to align with CDC guidelines. Employees of retail stores, restaurants, gyms and other businesses that serve customers directly must continue to wear masks. Customers are encouraged to do so. Even in schools, face coverings remain the rule. In general, there are exceptions for people with disabilities or health conditions that prevent the wearing of face coverings, and allowances for certain activities and situations where wearing a mask is difficult or interferes with communication, such as swimming, eating and drinking in a restaurant or bar, dental treatment, or talking to a person who is hard of hearing. Some orders vacate places of worship.
Connecticut has an indoor mask mandate that only extends to unvaccinated people, and Rhode Island has a hybrid order that requires face coverings for everyone at larger sites, but gives small businesses leeway based on the vaccination status of guests. Washington is the only state to require an outdoor mask that requires face coverings at outdoor events attended by 500 or more people. New Mexicans 2 years of age and older must wear a face covering in indoor public spaces, regardless of vaccination status, except when eating or drinking. The current mandate was implemented in August, replacing an earlier order from the state Department of Health requiring masks to be worn indoors only for people who were not yet fully vaccinated. New York is appealing a Long Island judge`s ruling that its requirement to wear a mask in schools and other public places is an illegal loop around the state constitution. Learn more: Read North Carolina`s order, which overrides most mask requirements, and the Face Covering FAQ. The state`s general ordinance on face coverings was repealed on May 29. Masks are recommended for people 5 years of age and older indoors outside the home and are mandatory in K-12 schools, health and long-term care facilities, emergency shelters, jails and public transit. Boston has introduced a citywide mask requirement that covers anyone over the age of 2 in indoor public places, except when eating or drinking. Springfield, the state`s third-largest city, requires face coverings in indoor public spaces and outdoor gatherings where social distancing cannot be maintained.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin criticized the mandate at a rally opposing the requirement to wear masks in schools, saying state officials never had the authority to introduce a mask rule indoors. As of Tuesday, several New York school districts said they had dropped masks or made it optional, including schools in Bellmore-Merrick, Glen Cove, Massapequa and Farmingdale. The mask requirement in Michigan ended on June 22, along with all COVID-related capacity restrictions on gatherings. The state had already lifted the mask requirement for fully vaccinated Michiganders in indoor and outdoor public places.
