A county in Western New York is returning to a mask mandate amid a rise in Covid-19 cases.
WIVB reports Erie County will require masks be worn in all indoor, public locations starting Tuesday at 6 a.m. as part of a four-phase plan announced by Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz. Masks must be worn by patrons age 2 and older in bars, restaurants, grocery stores, theaters, barber shops, beauty parlors, gyms, fitness centers, hotels, banks, entertainment venues and all other places open to the public.
“None of us wanted to do phase one… but we feel we must,” Poloncarz said.
According to WGRZ, if hospitalizations and cases do not decrease, phase two of the plan would require people be fully vaccinated to enter indoor dining, bars and entertainment views. Phase three would mean capacity restrictions similar to those implemented by the state last year, and phase four would mean shutdowns like at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.
Numbers will be re-evaluated in three weeks, Poloncarz said.
Covid cases have doubled over the past four weeks and gone up 22 percent last week alone. WIVB reports 91 percent of hospital beds in the county are currently full and the ICU is at 87% capacity; Erie County Health Commissioner Dr. Gale Burstein said wait times at hospital emergency rooms can be 8-12 hours at times.
“The Delta variant is spreading like wildfire in our community,” Burstein said.
The new mask mandate in Erie County follows the Town of Tonawanda’s announcement Friday that all town-owned facilities would require people wear a mask to enter public buildings, regardless of vaccination status. The Buffalo suburb’s policy took effect today to protect residents and employees.
Erie County’s seven-day Covid average positive testing rate is 9.3%, according to New York state data. Only 13 counties in New York state have a higher seven-day average, including Washington County at 13.3%, Cattaraugus County at 13.3%, Fulton County at 12.4% and Oswego County at 10.3%.
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