On May 20th, in his weekly press briefing, Health Officer Dr. Jeff Duchin discussed the Directive he issued today strongly urging continued use of face masks in indoor public spaces.

“Some may wonder why they should wear a mask if they are vaccinated, especially since we agree that COVID-19 vaccines give high protection against infection and spreading the virus, and unvaccinated people are the ones at risk to acquire and spread COVID-19. It’s because we have no way to know who is vaccinated and who isn’t, and it’s impractical for businesses to determine that. If unvaccinated people do not wear masks, the risk for COVID-19 spread increases. From a practical and community health perspective, the most reliable way to ensure everyone is safe is for everyone to wear a face mask in indoor public spaces for a few more weeks, until we get vaccination rates higher and disease rates lower.”

Dr. Jeff Duchin, Health Officer for Public Health – Seattle & King County.

For more on COVID-19 data trends, visit our data dashboards: https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/covid-19/data.aspx

For more on COVID-19 vaccine planning in King County: http://www.kingcounty.gov/covid/vaccine

Originally posted May 20, 2021