NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- Gov. Kathy Hochul said Wednesday that masks are still required in some settings in New York state—including public transit—days after a Florida judge scrapped a federal mask mandate for mass transit and caused confusion about where masks must be worn.
Masks are still required “in the short term” in the following settings in the state, Hochul said at a COVID-19 briefing in Syracuse.
• State-regulated health care settings
• State-regulated adult care facilities and nursing homes
• Correctional facilities
• Homeless shelters
• Domestic violence shelters
• Public transit: buses and bus stations; trains and train stations; subway trains and subway stations; airports
The governor said there’s been an uptick in cases and hospitalizations as two subvariants of the omicron variant circulate in the state, BA.2.12 and BA.2.12.1.
“We did identify two subvariants of omicron, which is driving the current spike in cases,” Hochul said. “But we have no evidence that these variants are more likely to have more severe impacts than other subvariants.”
“We’re a long way from the peak [in January 2022],” the governor added. “But I don’t even want to get close to that peak.”
Hochul said “we’re going to get there” and that she’s hopeful for the warmer months when people are gathering less inside.
“We believe that in certain settings for now—again if we hadn’t seen these two variants, I suspect we would have been able to say ‘goodbye’ to masks in all settings—but we watch for variants, they come and now we’re starting to see cases and hospitalizations go up,” the governor said.
On Monday, a federal judge in Florida struck down the national mask mandate on airplanes and mass transit. Many airlines and airports immediately scrapped their requirements that passengers wear face coverings.
A patchwork of requirements is now in place across New York and New Jersey. For example, the MTA requires masks, while NJ Transit has made them optional.
The Justice Department said it would only appeal the ruling if the CDC determined that the mask mandate was still necessary for public health.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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