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California expects to end most mask mandates June 15

State officials are expected to release mask "guidelines" for some indoor settings to coincide with the end of most pandemic-era restrictions.

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — California could end most of its mask mandates on June 15, coinciding with the state’s near-full reopening. 

Gov. Gavin Newsom said the state would still provide guidance for indoor businesses and events, but would not require them if vaccination numbers remain high and case rates remain low.

“We will be updating our mask guidelines, outdoor masking if we reach that threshold where we hope to be. We'll be eliminated those mandates,” said the governor. “The bottom line is we'll go back to the most broad strokes, a semblance of normalcy if we continue down this path in the next five weeks. I'm confident, based on all the good work that's being done all throughout this state that we'll reach those goals.”

His announcement is a change from last month when Newsom first targeted June 15 as a reopening date and may have caught some health officials by surprise.

The California Department of Public Health did not address a question from News 8 asking for the data used to reach the decision. A spokesperson instead referred News 8 back to Newsom’s remarks and said the agency would “update guidance as appropriate.”

Typically, CDPH hosts conference calls with county public health officers statewide before making sweeping changes. San Diego’s health officer, Wilma Wooten, M.D., M.P.H., said she learned of the upcoming mask guideline changes from Newsom’s announcement Wednesday.

“There was not a lot of discussion about this announcement,” said Wooten, who added she was still reviewing the governor’s remarks. 

The county has traditionally been in lockstep with state restrictions and re-openings although public health officers can impose their own restrictions. San Diego began requiring face coverings on May 1, 2020, six weeks before it became a state mandate.

Wooten would not rule out a local extension of the requirement if the county’s case rate remains high. It had an adjusted rate of 3.7 per 100,000 residents this week, the highest of the state’s five most populous counties.

“There’s nothing magic about June 15,” said Wooten. “Every jurisdiction is different, so unless we have case rates that are much lower, definitely less than 2.0, we will have to examine what we will follow through with that recommendation, but again, it depends on what our case rate is going to be.”

Federal health officials are also considering relaxing mask mandates further in some situations.

Last month, the Centers for Disease Control updated its guidelines to say people who have been fully vaccinated do not need to wear a mask indoors in small groups with others who are also fully vaccinated. It also says vaccinated people do not need to wear a mask outdoors.

A fully vaccinated person is defined as someone who has received either two doses of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and waited 14 days for the vaccine to fully take effect.

Both state and local health officials have stressed the importance of getting vaccinated. 

Several sites in San Diego have same-day appointments.

“I think a lot of the thought process behind that is the vaccine is available,” said Supervisor Nathan Fletcher. “We’ll obviously monitor between now and then what comes out from the state along with looking at all the relevant data and issues surrounding transmissibility of the virus and what’s happening and where we are. I think, in general, it’s encouraging that we can see a light at the end of the tunnel and continue forward progress.”

WATCH: 'June 15 is a date where we begin to return to normal' Supervisor Fletcher talks about the future

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