Los Angeles County Signals the Return of Mask Mandates

Los Angeles County is set to bring back mask mandates due to the newly reported rise in COVID variants BA.286 and EG.5

Barbara Ferrer, the Los Angeles County Public Health Director, encouraged people to wear masks, ventilation, hand washing, and vaccines during a COVID briefing.

Newsweek reported:

“In California, data from the state government shows COVID-19 hospitalizations increasing by 10.1 percent compared to the previous week, with a weekly total number of hospitalizations at 2,620.”

“I’m not going to say, there’s never going to be a time when we might need to all put our masks back on,” Barbara Ferrer said, signalling impending mask mandates in Los Angeles County.

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Meanwhile, New Yorkers were told to wear masks for Labor Day weekend due to the new Covid variant EG.5.

“As cases rise, precautions become increasingly important, especially for our most vulnerable New Yorkers who are older, disabled, or have underlying health conditions. Staying up to date with COVID-19 vaccines, along with other proven prevention tools – like masking, testing, and staying home when sick – continue to be our best defense against COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses,” NYC Health Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan said.

“Antibodies from vaccination and prior infection will continue to provide some protection, as will available antiviral treatments like Paxlovid, which is still effective against all circulating strains of COVID-19,” he said.

On Monday, former White House chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci voiced ‘concern’ that Americans will not comply with masks recommendations amid reports of ‘rising COVID cases.’

“I would hope that if we get to the point that the volume of cases is such and organizations like the CDC recommends — CDC does not mandate anything — recommends that people wear masks, I would hope that people abide by that recommendation and take into account the risks to themselves and their families,” Fauci told CNN.

The Cochrane Study released in January found that masks do almost nothing to prevent the spread of respiratory diseases.

As the Daily Fetched reported in August, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) found “no evidence” that proves medical-grade face masks protected vulnerable people from COVID-19, according to a new study.

The study investigated if masks such as N95, KN95, and FFP2 helped prevent vulnerable people from contracting the virus.

“The review did not identify any studies for inclusion, and so could provide no evidence to answer the research question,” the authors concluded.

“No studies matching the inclusion criteria were found, so no evidence could be presented,” they added, admitting the study conclusively proved face masks don’t work against COVID.

READ: Jerry Nadler: Parents Who Refused to Mask Toddlers Are Guilty of “Child Abuse”