The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reversed its face-covering guidance on July 27, advising vaccinated individuals in areas of substantial or high transmission risk to once again wear masks in indoor public settings, after announcing on May 13 that vaccinated individuals could “resume activities without wearing a mask or physically distancing.”
But even with new federal guidance, the recommendations acknowledge that state and local governments have the final say when it comes to mask mandates, and those mandates differ across the country. In some U.S. states and territories, face coverings are still mandated by law as a preventive measure during the coronavirus pandemic. Along with public health experts, many governors – including some who have changed their earlier stances on masks as COVID-19 cases have surged in their states – strongly encourage wearing face masks, regardless of state mandate.
According to a study conducted by the CDC in Kansas, following Gov. Laura Kelly’s July 2020 mask mandate on a county-by-county basis, the 24 counties with mandatory mask mandates saw an overall decrease in COVID-19 cases, while the 81 counties that opted out of the mask mandate continued to see increases in cases. Similarly, research conducted by Vanderbilt University’s Department of Health Policy in October found that COVID-19 death tolls were twice as high in Tennessee counties without mask mandates as compared to counties with directives in place. Gov. Bill Lee has not initiated a mask mandate in the state, deferring to local leaders.
For those areas with mask decrees, the details differ. Some states simply require a face covering anytime an individual leaves his or her residence, while others provide detailed instructions for where masks must be worn. In all states with mandates, children under the age of 2 years old should not wear masks, according to the CDC and further direction by states, but other age restrictions vary.
These are the U.S. states and territories with mask mandates for everyone, regardless of vaccination status:
District of Columbia | Guam | Hawaii | Louisiana | Nevada | New Mexico | Oregon | Puerto Rico | U.S. Virgin Islands | Washington
These are the U.S. states and territories with mask mandates for the unvaccinated:
California | Connecticut | Illinois | New York
These are the U.S. states and territories without mask mandates:
Alabama | Alaska | American Samoa | Arizona | Arkansas | Colorado | Delaware | Florida | Georgia | Idaho | Indiana | Iowa | Kansas |
Kentucky | Maine | Maryland | Massachusetts | Michigan | Minnesota | Mississippi | Missouri | Montana | Nebraska |
New Hampshire | New Jersey | North Carolina | North Dakota | Northern Mariana Islands | Ohio | Oklahoma | Pennsylvania | Rhode Island | South Carolina | South Dakota | Tennessee | Texas | Utah | Vermont | Virginia | West Virginia | Wisconsin | Wyoming
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