San Francisco Bay Area to drop some indoor mask mandates

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Indoor masking requirements in the San Francisco Bay Area will be eased for certain indoor public settings, including offices, gyms, college classrooms and churches, once counties reach low COVID-19 case and hospitalization rates and at least 80% of the total population is fully vaccinated, officials announced Thursday.

The Bay Area, with among the highest vaccination rates and lowest case rates in the nation, has been cautious during the pandemic, when counties throughout the region issued the nation's first stay-home order in March 2020.

After lifting some restrictions in the spring, public health officials in San Francisco, Marin, Napa, Sonoma, Contra Costa, Alameda, Santa Clara and San Mateo reinstated an indoor mask mandate in August as COVID-19 infections surged because of the highly contagious delta variant.

Cases have declined since then in the Bay Area, and officials have now agreed to start lifting mask mandates in some public spaces as of Oct. 15. It will be up to each county to determine its own mask rules.

“Indoor masking has helped to lower case counts, hospitalizations and COVID-19 deaths, so we don’t want to remove this important layer of COVID prevention too hastily,” said Santa Clara Health Officer Dr. Sara Cody in a statement. “These regional metrics will help keep our community safe, and ensure that our case rates are low and stable, our hospitals are in good shape, and vaccination rates are robust.”

In San Francisco, where 75% of the entire population is fully vaccinated, patrons of a wide array of businesses are required to show proof of full vaccination, including offices, gyms and college classrooms. Mayor London Breed's office said Thursday that mask requirements will be eased for those and other settings with fewer than...