Masking requirements in Montgomery County and the District of Columbia will change over the next couple of days as local jurisdictions within the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington address varying rates of transmission of the COVID-19 virus in the ongoing pandemic.
In Montgomery County, masks will once again be required in indoor public settings beginning Saturday, Nov. 20, 2021. This is a change from last month when the county lifted the restrictions. The new mandate comes after metrics compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show a “substantial” transmission of the virus in that county.
Those attending Mass or parish functions at Montgomery County churches this weekend will be required to wear masks. This requirement applies to all persons regardless of their vaccination status.
On Monday, Nov. 22, 2021, the District of Columbia will no longer require masks or face coverings at most indoor public places. However, masks will still be required in all schools, child care facilities and libraries; inside some D.C. government offices; on public transportation; in locations where people congregate, such as nursing homes, homeless shelters and assisted living facilities; and in any private business that wants a mask requirement.
The District has seen a lowering of the transmission rate of the virus since it peaked for the third time this year in September.
“This does not mean that people should stop, that everyone needs to stop, wearing their mask. But it does mean that we're shifting the government's response,” D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said Nov. 16 when she announced the lifting of the masking requirements.
Since the lifting of the masking mandate does not occur until Monday, those attending Mass or parish functions at Washington, D.C. churches this weekend will be required to wear masks. This requirement applies to all persons regardless of their vaccination status.
In addition to Montgomery County in Maryland and the District of Columbia, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington also includes the Maryland counties of Prince George’s, Charles, Calvert and St. Mary’s.
In October, the County Council in Prince George’s County extended the county’s indoor mask mandate through Dec. 9. Mass-goers are still required to wear a mask regardless of their vaccination status.
Earlier this week, Charles County lawmakers voted to continue for at least one more month the county’s mask mandate. Thus, those attending Mass at churches in that county must wear a mask or other face covering regardless of their vaccination status.
Government officials in Calvert and St. Mary’s Counties have not made any changes to masking mandates there that were imposed following a summer increase in new coronavirus cases, due to “breakthrough” infections and a rise in Delta variant cases.
A “breakthrough” infection is when a fully vaccinated person contracts the virus, although the CDC reports vaccinated persons “are far less likely to get severely sick or die than people who are unvaccinated.” The Delta variant of COVID-19 is particularly worrisome because it is about twice as contagious as the original virus. The Delta variant differs from the original coronavirus in that while it also causes fever and cough, it can also induce headaches, sinus congestion, sore throats and runny noses.
In Nov. 17 e-mail to local priests, Father Daniel Carson, the Vicar General and Moderator of the Curia for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington stressed that “masks are still required for now at all schools either by government requirement or Catholic Schools Office policy.”
Since COVID-19 was pronounced a pandemic in March 2020, the CDC has reported that more than 47 million Americans have contracted the virus, resulting in more than 766,000 deaths. In Maryland, 574,000 people have contracted the virus, resulting in more than 11,000 deaths. Of the nearly 66,000 cases reported in the District, almost 1,200 people have succumbed to the virus.
The CDC recommends that individuals who are unvaccinated should continue to wear a mask or face covering when indoors or in crowded areas to minimize the potential spread of the virus.
