Despite CDC advice, some on LI decline to mask again
Public health advice to mask up indoors is being met with a shrug in some parts of Long Island as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warn that Nassau and Suffolk counties are now at the highest risk of COVID-19 transmission.
Few if any businesses, schools or other venues have announced plans to reinstitute the masking mandates ubiquitous earlier in the pandemic — before vaccines were widespread and deaths and hospitalizations were brought under control.
“I mean, any business I’ve gone into, no one’s wearing masks. There are some business owners that might be wearing masks, but there is no posting asking patrons to wear masks,” said Barbara Ransome, the Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce's director of operations.
And, Ransome said, she knows of no plans to reinstate a mandate, much less ask customers to mask up: “I think they’re done with this.”
WHAT TO KNOW
- On Long Island, the COVID positivity rate, averaged over seven days, was 10.7% on Tuesday.
- A month ago, it was 5.5%.
- Although cases are rising, deaths and and hospitalizations remain relatively low
Last Thursday, the CDC elevated both counties’ “community level” risk to high, following an increase in COVID-19 cases in recent months.
A mask mandate in the schools ended in most places on March 2, and the mandate for certain indoor settings ended on Feb. 10.
“Nobody wants to wear a mask. I understand. It’s been two years now. Everyone’s tired of this. The weather’s getting nice. …but I think that it’s the smartest thing to do, especially to protect yourself, your family and to make sure, if things are getting worse, that we can hopefully keep it under control," said Dr. Adam Berman, associate chair of the emergency medicine department at Northwell’s Long Island Jewish Medical Center.
On Long Island, the COVID positivity rate, averaged over seven days, was 10.7% on Tuesday, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office said in a news release. A month ago, it was 5.5%.
The CDC is recommending, though not forcing, masking indoors in public, now required only in certain locations in the state. The state health department issued similar recommendations last week
Jeanne Marcial of Mineola said she doesn’t like wearing a mask inside but would if need be.
"It's really up to the person themselves, whether they want to wear a mask or not,” she said. “If they want to wear a mask, it's their prerogative."
Vanessa Bowser of Uniondale said she favors masking: “How hard is it to put a little mask on? When you walk out the store, you take it off.”
Last week, the Jericho school superintendent, Hank Grishman, told Newsday that, “maybe there's some wisdom in looking at either recommending or requiring masks in the future” if local rates of infection keep climbing.
But on Wednesday, Grishman said the district did not plan on impose a masking mandate absent an order from Nassau County’s health department, New York State, or the Jericho board of education.
“At this point, I have no plan to mandate masks,” Grishman said. Asked why, he said, without elaborating, “I’m fearful to answer that question, OK?”
Deirdre Gilligan, a spokeswoman for Syntax, the public relations agency that represents dozens of Long Island school systems, did not comment about masking plans, emailing: “We’ll let you know if we have anything [to] offer.”
Stefanie Shuman, a spokeswoman for the Stop & Shop supermarkets, said masks are recommended, saying only: “Stop & Shop is following the recent CDC guidance and strongly recommends that everyone wear a mask indoors, regardless of personal vaccination status.”
Frank Camarano of East Meadow, president of the Nassau Council of Chambers of Commerce, said he had no idea about the CDC and state health department recommendations until Newsday's inquiry.
“I imagine, if Nassau County reaches a point where they feel that mask mandates are required, then they’ll let the businesses know here, and then whether they like it or not, they will comply,” he said.
He added: “To this day, if I see somebody driving in a car by themself, and they have a mask on, I think they’re insane, but they’re entitled to do whatever they want to do. Right? That’s their business.”
Marykate Guilfoyle, a spokeswoman for Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone, didn't answer an email inquiring about a possible mandate there.
A spokesman for Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, Christopher J. Boyle, said the county has no plans to reimpose a masking mandate. Boyle sent a statement from Blakeman nearly identical to one shared in recent days: “Nassau County is not in crisis. Our hospitalization rate remains low, and most who are getting sick are experiencing cold-like symptoms."
Matthew Chayes, a Newsday reporter since 2007, covers New York City.
