The state’s COVID-19 mask requirements will roll back in many settings on Saturday, roughly two years after the arrival of the virus brought much of life to a halt in Washington state.
As of Saturday, mask rules will be removed for places like schools, childcare facilities, restaurants and bars, religious buildings, gyms, grocery stores and other retail establishments. Masks will still be required in settings like hospitals, doctors’ offices and other medical facilities, jails, long-term care settings and public transit.
Talking about easing the masking requirements, Dr. Gib Morrow, health officer for the Kitsap Public Health District, said he thought that reactions would range from relief, liberation and happiness to anxiety, concern and stress.
“I think that it’s just going to be really important for people to understand that people are going to make their own individual choices at this point and that we need to be tolerant and accepting and supportive and kind about people’s personal health choices,” he said. “There may be a lot of people that continue to wear masks for very good reasons.”
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Beyond where masks will still be required, there will be still be situations where masking up will make sense, such as in the case of a COVID-19 outbreak found in a school or a business, Morrow said.
“Don’t throw those masks away quite yet,” he said. “We know they work. They’re a useful tool and an important layer in the whole approach to preventing the spread.”
Masks in schools
Perhaps the biggest change to come with the relaxed requirements will be in schools. Districts in Kitsap and Mason counties are preparing for K-12 students and staff to be unmasked inside school settings for the first time since the pandemic forced districts to close down in March 2020.
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Greg Lynch, who oversees school districts in Kitsap, Mason, Clallam and Jefferson counties as superintendent of Olympic Educational Service District 114, said it’s smart business for school districts to continue following guidance from local health jurisdictions when it comes to masking policies and other COVID-19 mitigation efforts.
Although guidance may differ from jurisdiction to jurisdiction based on test positivity rates and other factors, Lynch said, “We really don’t want school district superintendents or boards necessarily taking on the responsibility of being the public health officer for their school district.”
With the indoor mask mandates ending, Lynch stressed the “optional” component to the guidance. For some students and staff, the option to eliminate mask-wearing will be a welcome relief, while others might opt to continue utilizing face coverings.
In response to Gov. Jay Inslee’s announcement in late February that school masking would no longer be required, most local districts issued email statements focused on respecting individual choice while also warning that bullying of any kind between the masked and the maskless won’t be tolerated.
“One of things we’re having a lot of conversations around is the social/emotional impacts on kids whose families insist that they keep masks on,” Lynch said. “We are worried about their harassment, intimidation and bullying.”
Lynch said there will be some instances where a school might require masking, such as a student returning to in-person instruction after being out of school after a positive COVID-19 test. An outbreak within a classroom could also lead to temporary masking and/or cohorting.
Debra Dunn, principal at Ordway Elementary School on Bainbridge Island, wrote to parents and guardians last week:
The new policy is not ‘NO MORE MASKS’ but rather optional. In this way, we will ensure and expect respect for whatever decisions individuals make. Similarly among our staff there will be some wearing masks and others who will not. Please talk with your children about your expectations for your family and please also reinforce that some families may have extenuating circumstances that inform their decisions.
‘Closer to back to normal’
YMCA locations in Bremerton and Silverdale will move to making masks optional for patrons and staff as of Saturday, said Harold Shea, director of operations for the YMCA of Pierce and Kitsap Counties. Shea said that between the two Kitsap locations, about 2,500 members had placed their memberships on hold because of either the mask rules or because child watch services were not available. In April, the child supervision program will return for the first time since the pandemic began.
“Personally and professionally, it feels like we’re getting closer to back to normal and that’s exciting,” Shea said. “We really look forward to a number of members coming back.”
Similarly, Kitsap Regional Library announced this week that masks would no longer be required at its branches as of Saturday.
For now, masks will still be required in Kitsap Transit buses, ferries and vanpools in line with the federal government’s requirements for those settings. Those rules had been set to expire on March 18, but on Thursday, the Transportation Security Administration announced that it would extend requirements for mask wearing on public transportation and in transportation hubs through April 18.
Said Washington State Ferries spokesman Ian Sterling: “The federal transit mask rules remain the same, so if you’re in an indoor area of a ferry or a ferry terminal, you have to wear a mask still.”
In Bremerton, the Admiral Theatre’s current COVID-19 policies require patrons to wear masks at all times in the venue.
“We’re showing a film this weekend and the current policy is still in effect,” Nate Murphy, marketing director for the venue, said in an email to the Kitsap Sun. “Our board of directors is discussing a policy update, but we don’t have any announcement to make at this time.”
Nathan Pilling is a reporter covering Bainbridge Island, North Kitsap and Washington State Ferries for the Kitsap Sun. He can be reached at 360-792-5242, nathan.pilling@kitsapsun.com or on Twitter at @KSNatePilling.
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