LA reinstates indoor masking for Covid vaccinated as public health officials scramble over Delta variant

The county of Los Angeles has reissued a recommendation for wearing masks indoors, regardless of vaccination status, as public health officials clash over the Delta variant and its mutations spreading from India.

While the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention issued guidance in May that vaccinated Americans no longer need masks indoors, the World Health Organisation says it’s more “urgent” than ever to wear masks to stop the spread of new variants.

Citing the Delta variant, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health issued updated guidance that “strongly recommends” indoor masking regardless of vaccination status. The recommendation is currently voluntary.

California’s 15 June reopening aligned with the CDC’s guidance allowing fully vaccinated people to forgo masks in public indoor spaces, with LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger among the chorus urging governor Gavin Newsom to life mask mandates across the state.

LA County public health officials said that despite people who are fully vaccinated appearing well protected from Delta variants, everyone should focus on maximum protection “until we better understand how and to who the Delta variant is spreading”.

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