LARGO, Md. – Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks announced today that the County will reinstitute an indoor public mask mandate due to a continued rise in COVID-19 metrics. The mandate will go into effect Sunday, August 8, 2021 at 5:00 PM, and applies to vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals.
“After consulting with health officials who are monitoring our COVID-19 metrics daily, we have been advised that we are now at a point where we must reinstitute an indoor public mask mandate to keep Prince Georgians safe,” said Alsobrooks. “The spread of the new Delta variant shows that we can only get out of this pandemic by getting more people vaccinated. If you have not been vaccinated, please do so as soon as possible, not only to protect you and your loved ones, but also to prevent us from sliding back further in our recovery.”
Beginning Sunday, August 8, 2021 at 5:00 PM, all residents and visitors over the age of five will be required to wear masks in all indoor public venues and businesses in Prince George’s County, even if they are fully vaccinated. This includes, but is not limited to, restaurants, retail stores, entertainment venues, conference centers, and office settings.
Similar to previous mask mandates, some exceptions apply, such as when an individual is actively eating or drinking or individuals who have a bona fide disability that prevents them from wearing a mask.
The new mandate is based on the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance that individuals in areas with “high” or “substantial” transmission of COVID-19 should wear masks in indoor public settings, even if they are fully vaccinated. According to the CDC, Prince George’s County is now in the “substantial” transmission category.
“Every COVID-19 vaccine available in Prince George’s County has been proven to be extremely safe and extremely effective at keeping people from getting hospitalized or dying from the virus, including its Delta variant,” said Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Dr. George Askew. “The vast majority of people in Prince George’s County who have died or been hospitalized over the last few weeks due to COVID were unvaccinated. The science is clear that the vaccines work, and if more people are vaccinated, we can finally end this pandemic.”
The County’s positivity rate is 4.6% as of August 1, up from 0.9% on July 5. The average daily case rate has increased to 11.0 cases per 100,000 residents as of August 1, the highest rate observed since May 5. Finally, the County’s infection rate is 1.33 as of July 28, which places the County in the “high risk” range.