St. Louis County Mask Requirement Goes Into Effect Friday
On Wednesday, July 1, St. Louis City and County officials and the St. Louis Metropolitan Pandemic Task Force announced that all individuals will be required to wear face masks when in public to help prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus. This order will go into effect at 7:00 a.m. Friday, July 3.
Anyone over the age of 9 will be required to wear a mask or face covering in all indoor buildings and outdoor public places where social distancing is not possible. There are exceptions for individuals with certain medical conditions. Retail and restaurant workers have been required to wear masks since the city and county reopened on May 18, but up until this point, state and local officials had only recommended everyone wear a mask. This order makes it a requirement for everyone to wear a mask in public.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), cloth face masks can help prevent respiratory droplets from traveling into the air and onto other people when the person wearing the cloth face mask coughs, sneezes, talks, or raises their voice. The CDC points to the fact that the virus mainly spreads among people who are in close contact to one another, so by wearing a face mask when we are close to others or in a situation where it is difficult to maintain social distancing, I believe we can reduce the spread of the virus.
This order by local officials currently does not have an expiration date. I will keep you all informed on any changes and when local officials decide to remove this mask requirement.
As always, it is an honor and privilege serving you in the Missouri General Assembly. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions, concerns or ideas to improve our state government. Thank you for reading my Capitol Report and I look forward to sharing more of our work with you soon.