MISSOULA – The mask mandate in Missoula County remains in effect.
The announcement comes after Gov. Greg Gianforte announced Wednesday that he would lift the mandate for the entire machine Friday.
A message on social media from the Missoula City-County Health Department states that “when science suggests that it is safe to revoke a mask mandate, Missoula County will do so, but the time is not now.”
MCCHD issued a statement Thursday morning stating that there are currently no plans to remove the Missoula County mask mandate. Health officials will allow science to guide the critical decisions they make during this health crisis.
Local public health officials stress that science suggests that wearing a mask is necessary to slow the spread of COVID-19.
MCCHD notes that the Harvard Global Health Institute reports that the COVID-19 risk level in Montana and Missoula County is “in the orange zone. This means that we are still close to the red zone, which is considered a tipping point for uncontrolled spread of the virus. “
“Missoula County was a leader in the response to this virus and during this pandemic consistently reported lower COVID-19 numbers than other major Montana provinces due to our COVID19 mitigation efforts,” said Hayley Devlin, MCCHD’s public information officer. .
“We want to thank the people of Missoula County for their hard work and sacrifice in working with us to make this possible,” the news release concluded.
Click here to read the full statement from the Missoula City-County Health Department.
The information below is from the Missoula City-County COVID-19 Information Web site:
Within Missoula County, the COVID-19 mitigation requirements usually include:
- Face coverings are required inside, public spaces for adults 5 and older.
- Face covering requirement for outdoor groups of more than 25 people.
- Guidance for businesses, government offices, non-profit organizations, meeting places and places of worship.
- Guidelines for events.
If there is no state-level mask mandate, the Missoula County mask mandate remains valid and enforceable in Missoula County.