Public Health officials report the overall risk of coronavirus transmission in Lane County is going down. It’s projected the county risk level will be at “moderate” by March 12-- when indoor mask mandates are lifted statewide.
While this is good news, spokesperson Jason Davis said individuals— particularly the vulnerable— need to keep making healthy decisions to protect themselves and others.
“You know, we have grown so accustomed to looking at policy shifts as indication of the trajectory of the pandemic. And I think that we are moving into a period of time when that won’t be true any longer,” he said. “So, as we see the mask mandate lifted, this should not be a time to burn your masks.”
Davis reminded that interventions like distancing and masking have reduced- not just COVID cases- but other respiratory illnesses like influenza.
Throughout the pandemic, Lane County has never instituted any of its own local mandates. Last weekend, the county recorded seven more deaths due to COVID-19.
