Topline
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will extend its mandate requiring travelers on planes and other forms of public transportation to wear masks for another two weeks from April 18, the agency said Wednesday, to allow for more time to assess the highly transmissible Omicron BA.2 variant of coronavirus that has led to a rise in Covid-19 cases in several states.
Passengers with face masks wait in line at a ticket booth.
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Key Facts
The agency decided to extend the mandate for 15 days through May 3 to “assess the potential impact the rise of cases has on severe disease, including hospitalizations and deaths, and health care system capacity,” it said in a statement.
The decision comes with the seven-day moving average of daily Covid-19 cases at roughly 30,000 as of April 11, up 20 % from a week ago, according to the CDC.
Key Background
When the CDC extended the federal mask mandate in March to April 18, the agency said it would use the time period to create a “framework” to decide when masks would be required, evaluating factors such as levels of severe illness or the emergence of new variants. The White House has been monitoring an uptick in Covid-19 cases in several major cities across the U.S., including Washington, D.C., New York and Philadelphia, linked to the BA.2 variant. The BA.2 strain comprised 86% of coronavirus infections for the week ending April 9, according to the CDC. The news of extension comes days after Philadelphia became the first major U.S. city to reimpose an indoor mask mandate this week, which will take effect on April 18, in response to surging cases. More than 20 GOP-led states last month sued the federal government over the transportation mask mandate, asking for the nationwide policy to be overturned because it violates state sovereignty. The mandate is also unpopular with CEOs of major airlines, who urged the Biden administration in March to revoke the policy.
Further Reading
Extending Mask Mandate For Airplanes, Public Transportation ‘On The Table’, White House Says (Forbes)
CDC to extend federal transportation mask mandate for additional 15 days (CNN)
Philly Masks Up—Again: First Major U.S. City To Reimpose Mask Mandate Amid Latest Covid Surge (Forbes)
