No indoor mask mandate in Solano County yet, officials say
(Graphic by Solano NewsNet)
Despite an increase in infections and hospitalizations involving the so-called “Delta variant” of the novel coronavirus COVID-19, health officials in Solano County are not ready to require locals to wear face masks while patronizing indoor businesses and restaurants.
The county’s COVID-19 infection positivity rate is now over 11 percent, up from 10 percent before the July 4 holiday, according to data reviewed by Solano NewsNet.
The rise in cases would relegate Solano County back to the most-restrictive “purple” tier if state health officials were still using the system. The state abandoned the color-coded system in mid-June after seeing an increase in vaccinations and a decrease in infection cases.
Like other areas, Solano County has held regular vaccination clinics in every major city since they became available earlier this year, going so far as to partner with McDonald’s in order to distribute the shot to fast food customers. Still, some residents refuse to get vaccinated, and they are at a higher risk of developing complications from a COVID-19 infection.
The amount of people admitted to hospitals throughout California with COVID-19 symptoms or infections has jumped since the state eased the masking mandate. Nearly all of those hospitalized are unvaccinated, health experts affirm.
“The number of cases in Solano County and across the state and country is disproportionately impacting those who are not vaccinated,” Jayleen Richards, a county health official, told the Vallejo Times-Herald newspaper in an interview.
Richards said the majority of Solano County’s residents over the age of 65 are vaccinated. The problem is with the county’s younger population, she complained.
For now, Richards said Solano County hospitals are not on the brink of running out of bed space. In December, Solano NewsNet exclusively reported that Kaiser Permanente had nearly run out of space in its intensive care units at Solano-area hospitals, something that was backed by state hospitalization data and disputed by Kaiser Permanente officials.
State health officials are looking cautiously at the spike in COVID-19 infections. This week, Governor Gavin Newsom said the state would not need to revert to tougher COVID-19 restrictions if more Californians moved to get vaccinated.
“The answer to the Delta variant is vaccination,” he said. “We don’t need masking — just get vaccinated.”
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