State Expands COVID-19 Mask Requirement

The Pennsylvania health department secretary signed an order Wednesday expanding the state’s facial mask requirement.

The new order, signed by Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine, immediately requires masks to be worn if people are outside and unable to maintain six feet of distance from people that are not members of their household, inside public places, while on public transit vehicles, obtaining services from the health care sector, and while interacting with members of the public during work.

The exception is for people with medical conditions that stop them from wearing a mask, those unable to remove a mask without assistance, kids under the age of two, and those communicating or seeking to communicate with someone who is hearing impaired. The order does not require people to show documentation that they are exempt from the rule.

The previous order that was signed in April required wearing of masks in businesses.

“This mask-wearing order is essential to stopping the recent increase in COVID-19 cases we have seen in Pennsylvania,” Gov. Tom Wolf said in a statement. “Those hot spots can be traced to situations where Pennsylvanians were not wearing masks or practicing social distancing – two practices that must be adhered to if we want to maintain the freedoms we have in place under our reopening.”

Levine’s authority to impose the order comes from the state’s Disease Prevention and Control Act.

“The mask-wearing order will be sent to state and local officials, law enforcement and others tasked with education about the order for those not in compliance,” the governor’s office said.

“It is essential that Pennsylvanians wear masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” Levine said. “While cases increase in some areas, we cannot become complacent. My mask protects you, and your mask protects me. Wearing a mask shows that you care about others, and that you are committed to protecting the lives of those around you.”

Facial masks, according to experts, are an easy way to cut down on the spread of COVID-19. The basic mitigation measure has targeted with misinformation and conspiracy theories pushed by those who decline to put a breathable covering over their mouth and nose for the health of their neighbors and the small business community.

“Americans who don’t wear masks may ‘propagate the further spread of infection,’” Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said this week.

The state’s expanded mask requirement comes as some parts of the state see an increase in COVID-19 infections as the state reopens. Parts of the country are currently being hit hard by the pandemic.

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