City of New Haven Mandates Masks Starting Today as County COVID-19 Cases Climb

New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker announced that the city is now mandating all people wear masks indoors starting Monday.

The mandate comes as New Haven County reaches a high level of community transmission for the virus, according to the CDC.

City of New Haven Returns to Masks as County COVID Cases Climb

“This is similar to mask mandates we’ve had before,” Elicker said. “It will be indoors, public spaces. So, retail establishments, restaurants when you’re not eating.”

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It follows the governor’s executive order to let municipalities issue mask mandates instead of one statewide order.

With all that's changing in the pandemic landscape, many people have questions. Dr. Howard Forman, a professor of Public Health and Management at Yale University, sat down with NBC Connecticut to answer some of them.

The decision comes as COVID cases continue to climb in New Haven County. City Health Director Maritza Bond calls the county-wide rise disheartening.

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“In the past week, the city of New Haven has had 250 new cases, and it’s not necessary when we know vaccines provide protection,” Bond said.

The delta variant has driven the seven-day average for new COVID-19 infections to levels not seen since the winter surge.

According to Bond, 65% of city residents have had a first dose of the COVID vaccine and 58% are fully vaccinated. They are seeing a gradual increase in people getting shots.

The mask mandate means the city’s COVID-19 task force will continue to make visits to businesses around the city to ensure the order is being followed. Bond describes them as friendly visits to offer information and masks to establishments.