Cary will stop requiring masks to be worn indoors. Here’s when the mandate expires.
Cary will end its indoor mask mandate at 12:01 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 29, “in response to falling rates of COVID-19 infection,” Mayor Harold Weinbrecht announced Thursday.
A mask mandate has been in effect since Aug. 18, when the town issued a proclamation requiring face coverings in all public and private indoor spaces.
The town’s decision to end its mandate makes it the first among Wake County municipalities to do so among those that reinstated masking requirements in August as the delta variant caused COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations to spike.
“When we reintroduced the mask requirement in response to the delta variant case surge, I knew it was a lot to ask, but I had no doubt people here would continue to do the right thing, and they have,” Weinbrecht said in a release. “Thanks to our high vaccination rate and the concern you’ve shown for each other through continued masking, positive case rates have once again declined significantly, which allows us to relax restrictions while still encouraging caution.”
Weinbrecht noted that more than 75% of Wake County’s total population had received at least one dose of a vaccine, and said he was encouraged that vaccinations for children between the ages of 5 and 11 are expected to be authorized soon.
The expiration of Cary’s mask mandate will also apply to facilities owned and operated by the town, which required visitors and staff to wear a mask prior to the town-wide mandate being enacted.
Masks will still be required on GoCary buses and at the Cary Depot, however, under a federal order, the town said.
Wake County issued its own mask mandate that applies to unincorporated areas and five towns that signed onto it. The county is expected to extend its current mandate, which is set to expire on Nov. 1, The News & Observer reported.
Raleigh, which also issued its own mandate, is refraining from relaxing requirements until Wake decides to do so, in order to “be consistent in our message,” Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin told The N&O.
What are mask rules in other counties
Other Triangle counties like Durham and Orange enacted mandates that are in effect indefinitely.
Durham and Orange County officials told The N&O they won’t end their mandates until the level of community spread, and the risk of strain on local hospitals decreases.
As of Oct. 28, Wake and Durham counties both have high community transmission of COVID-19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Orange County has substantial community transmission, which is one level lower.
The N&O asked county and municipal leaders what needs to happen in order for mask mandates to be lifted. See what they said here.
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This story was originally published October 28, 2021 at 3:21 PM.
