Wary and Weary, Los Angeles Largely Accepts Restored Mask Mandate - The New York Times

Los Angeles County on Sunday became the first major county to revert to requiring masks for all people indoors in public spaces.

— As the sun began to burn through the morning marine layer, patrons of the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, Calif., were still adjusting to the new normal, which was pretty much the old normal — an order from Los Angeles County to wear masks indoors in businesses and public places.

Out-of-state tourists found themselves wearing masks for the first time in months, sometimes annoyed but largely compliant, and one restaurant employee who forgot about the mandate was able to secure a mask by running across the street and asking employees at the Starbucks if they had extras.

“Some people think it’s a punishment,” said Lisa Liu, 38, who said she was fully vaccinated.

The indoor mask mandate for all people regardless of vaccination status took effect at midnight on Saturday, making Los Angeles County the first major county in the United States to reinstate such a requirement.

The policy expands beyond the current state standard and the recommendation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; both require masks for unvaccinated people but not for those who are fully vaccinated.

However, the Los Angeles County sheriff, Alex Villanueva, said in a statement on Friday that his officers would not be enforcing the mandate.

“Forcing the vaccinated and those who already contracted Covid-19 to wear masks indoors is not backed by science,” Sheriff Villanueva wrote.

Another staff member, Richard Rice, said that he probably would not ask people to wear masks.

“I think adhering to a mask mandate is more up to the individual than the institution,” he said.

Gavin Newsom lifted California’s mask mandate as part of the state’s “grand reopening,” county health officials released a statement “strongly” recommending that all vaccinated people wear masks indoors, despite eased restrictions.

recommendation that fully vaccinated people do not need to wear masks indoors in most situations.

The vaccination rate in Los Angeles County is above the national average, with more than 69 percent of residents receiving at least one dose and 61 percent being fully vaccinated.

In an elevator, three unmasked men vacationing from Tunisia, who said they had been vaccinated, instantly produced blue surgical masks and slipped them on when informed that the mandate had taken effect