WeHo loosens mask rules

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The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health revised its Health Officer Order effective Friday, April 30, 2021, after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released updated guidance regarding the use of face coverings on April 27, 2021.

On Monday, May 3, 2021, the City Council of the City of West Hollywood approved a Resolution terminating and superseding the City of West Hollywood’s regulations requiring members of the public to wear face coverings, thereby immediately aligning the City’s policies with updated regulations issued by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health.

Updated LA County guidance provides different recommendations for “Unvaccinated” people — defined by the CDC as those who have yet to receive both doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or the single dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine, and “Fully Vaccinated” people — defined by the CDC as those who have received both doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or the single dose of Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Individuals are considered fully vaccinated two weeks or more after they have received the second dose of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or two weeks or more after they have received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

The LA County Health Officer Order, with certain exceptions, allows Fully Vaccinated people to conduct activities outdoors without wearing a mask when alone, when with members of their household, and when with a small group of people who are either Fully Vaccinated or who are not Fully Vaccinated but not at high risk for severe illness or death from COVID-19.

Fully Vaccinated people and Unvaccinated people must still wear masks, as follows:

● At crowded outdoor events

● In crowded spaces where physical distance is not feasible and it is not known if everyone in the space is Fully Vaccinated

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● In indoor public settings unless expressly permitted by the LA County Health Officer Order

● At worksites and businesses

● In any setting where masking is required by the facility operator or business or by the LA County Health Officer Order or its protocols.

Unvaccinated people are still advised to wear a mask when attending outdoor gatherings and while dining at outdoor restaurants with friends from multiple households. All people – both Unvaccinated and Fully Vaccinated – must continue to maintain a distance of six feet from others when in public settings.

Details of the revised Health Officer Order are available on the LA County Public Health website: http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus.

COVID-19 daily case counts and hospitalizations have been decreasing in the state and region, but the potential for community transmission remains a top concern for local health officials. Surges in other parts of the country and internationally, as well as concerns about COVID-19 variants, signal the need to remain vigilant about using face coverings, maintaining social distance, and frequently washing hands and using hand sanitizers.

Health officials urge all people to get vaccinated. Residents ages 16 and older with internet access are urged to use www.VaccinateLACounty.com to sign up for a vaccination appointment. For people without access to a computer or the Internet, or people with disabilities, an LA County call center is open daily from 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. to help schedule appointments at (833) 540-0473.

Additional information, such as links to West Hollywood-area drug store chains offering vaccinations, is available on the City of West Hollywood’s website at www.weho.org/coronavirus in the Vaccines and Testing Information section.

Individuals are considered fully vaccinated two weeks or more after they have received the second dose of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or two weeks or more after they have received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

For up-to-date answers to frequently asked questions about vaccines from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, please visit: www.publichealth.lacounty.gov/media/Coronavirus/docs/about/FAQ-Vaccine.pdf.

The City of West Hollywood has declared a local emergency in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. When in public, all community members should maintain your space with social (physical) distancing of at least six feet. Public Health officials recommend that everyone, even those who are vaccinated, continue to follow health recommendations. All people, regardless of vaccination status, should cover your face when in crowded outdoor areas and must use face coverings in indoor public settings.

West Hollywood City Hall is currently closed to the public and has suspended all in-person transactions. Most public City buildings and facilities remain closed. City Hall remains accessible for business and essential services with transactions to be conducted by phone (323) 848-6400 and via the City’s website at www.weho.org.

City of West Hollywood coronavirus updates are available at www.weho.org/coronavirus and the City encourages community members to follow @wehocity on Twitter and Facebook and Instagram and turn on notifications for up-to-date information.

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Confused
Confused
3 years ago

This posting is strangely confusing, if I am correct, the City Council has removed the mandatory face-mask requirement city-wide? If I am correct, am I the only one concerned with this, with a big push to open Bars in the city at the same time. Will, I only have to tell the doorman, I have been vaccinated, and poof no mask? This posting by Wehoville is really incoherent and with the City Council, removing the mandatory face masks ordinance, I see bad things coming around the bend. But, hey, we will at least have gender-neutral bathrooms soon!!! Glad the city’s… Read more »

Joshua88
Joshua88
3 years ago

I objected to the closure of parks and restrooms.
Yey! I am fully vaccinated.

William Seegmiller
William Seegmiller
3 years ago

Whatever your politics on health mandates, mask compliance enforcement led by armed police was an optics nightmare and demonstrably led to biased policing of homeless and “undesirable” people. Sepi rightfully acknowledged these unintended harms (and earned back some credibility with those of us who still care about personal sovereignty) amidst the histrionics of the current bio security paradigm.