On September 3rd at 5:00 PM the Boulder County mask mandate took effect, requiring masks in all indoor public spaces. This mandate from Boulder County came on the heels of CDC’s recommendations amidst the rising threat from the Delta Variant. Boulder County reached and has consistently maintained a high transmission level and thus requires masks inside, and strongly suggests them outside, to bring it down to moderate or low transmission levels(BCPH).  It has been a while since the start of this new mandate, but it is still very important to wear masks.  Masks are still optional when outside and while eating, so feel free to hang out outside so you can take off your masks.  

This mandate came from concern over the spreading Delta Variant. The Delta Variant is almost twice as contagious as the original SARS-CoV-2 virus according to the American Society for Microbiology. This variant of the virus is much deadlier and has been attributed to more severe symptoms.   Wearing masks when required is crucial to stopping the spread of this new, deadlier, Delta Variant, so abide by the regulations and hopefully we can overcome this wave.

The Delta Variant, as has been mentioned, is much more contagious than any other strain, and attributes to 83% of COVID-19 cases. This new strain is very dangerous, especially with 57.7% of the total US population being fully vaccinated according to Mayo Clinic.  Since the US has barely over half of the population vaccinated we are susceptible to this new Delta Variant and possibly even newer deadlier viruses. The vaccine has proved to be effective with the variant, which illustrates the importance of getting vaccinated to protect each person and every community as a whole.  Even though the mask mandate was put into effect a while ago it is still important today to follow the rules to keep everyone safe and healthy.