L.A. County to require people wear face masks outside of the home. What are the rules?
Leaving the house? If you’re in Los Angeles, you better have a face mask with you.
Los Angeles officials said this week that a mask is required at all times when leaving the house as the coronavirus pandemic lingers.
Mayor Eric Garcetti said Wednesday that all Los Angeles residents are required to wear face coverings outside the home. Exceptions are made for children under the age of 2 and people living with disabilities, he said.
“Face coverings help stop the spread of the virus, and wearing them in public creates a layer of protection,” the order says. “However, a face covering is not a substitute for other critical measures to slow the spread of COVID-19 — most importantly, staying home as much as possible, washing hands frequently, and practicing safe physical distancing of at least 6 feet in all settings.”
The rule applies “unless the person is participating in a solo activity where they do not expect to be in the vicinity of other people,” ABC 7 reported. Since people pass others while walking in a park or hiking, a covering should be worn, the news outlet reported.
“Simply put: Bring your mask with you whenever you leave the home,” Garcetti said, according to ABC 7. “You never know when you’re going to bump into somebody around a corner in a park.”
Face masks are required not only in the city, but the entire county. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said Thursday that all county residents must wear face coverings when they go outside, The Los Angeles Times reported.
“Masks are, in fact, mandatory across the entire county when you’re outside of your home, not with members of your household and in any kind of contact with other people,” Ferrer said, according to The Times.
Los Angeles County has had more than 35,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus, according to the county’s public health department. More than 1,700 people have died, Public Health reported.
About 17,000 of the confirmed cases have been within Los Angeles city limits, according to the county data.
This story was originally published May 14, 2020 at 3:53 PM with the headline "L.A. County to require people wear face masks outside of the home. What are the rules?."