MASKS ARE BACK

NYC Mayor ‘Strongly’ Recommends Vaxxed New Yorkers Mask Up Again

The recommendation for masks stops short of a full-blown mandate even as COVID cases rise citywide.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday that the city will “strongly recommend” that New Yorkers dust off their masks and begin wearing them indoors again. “We want to strongly recommend that people wear masks in indoor settings even if you’re vaccinated,” de Blasio said during a press conference. The recommendation stops short of a full-blown mandate even as cases rise citywide.

The push to mask up comes after the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions’s latest guidance, which said people in areas with substantial or high transmission should don masks again regardless of vaccination status. All of New York City surpasses the threshold for new cases described by the agency that would prompt it to advise masking. The mayor also continued to press for vaccination, touting 10 million doses that have been administered citywide, with more to come after he also announced that new city employees will have to provide proof of vaccination.