By Pepper Fisher
PORT ANGELES – Clallam County Health Officer Dr. Allison Berry issued an indoor mask mandate this morning that will go into effect starting Monday.
“At this point today, I am issuing a masking order that requires that everyone in indoor spaces to wear a mask who’s over the age of five, regardless of their vaccine status, that will go into effect on Monday. It will apply to Jefferson and Clallam County’s, it will apply to all businesses and government spaces. Basically, any indoor space that you go into, you will be required to wear a mask while you are there. Whether you are vaccinated or not.”
The decision to issue the order is driven by the unprecedented number of Delta variant cases on the peninsula, happening despite over 50% of the population being vaccinated.
“This is a wave that is driven by people who are not vaccinated. We do not have cases of outbreaks that were started by vaccinated people. Vaccinated people are often the recipients of outbreaks. So if you are in a closed space with a lot of unvaccinated people, you can get covid-19, but they are not the folks who start it. They are the people who get exposed.”
Berry admits that the burden of enforcing the mandate falls on business owners, and says their licenses could be jeopardized if they don’t do their best to comply.
Exemptions to the order include those who meet two medical exemptions, which she says are rare, but usually are people who struggle to wear a mask because of advanced heart failure. Also exempted are fully vaccinated people who are indoors, staying at least 6 feet apart from others, and not working with the public, such as in the workplace.
The number of cases per 100,000 population in a 2-week period is considered high when it reaches 75, and before vaccinations began that number only briefly went over 200 at its worst. The current number is 333.
There has been some conversation about the idea that vaccination is a personal health decision. It is not. It doesn’t just affect your health. It affects the health of everyone around you. If you get vaccinated, it’s not just for you. But because you want to prevent spreading infection to everyone in your life. It is a public health move.”