On Monday, June 28 at 12:01am, the statewide mask mandate in Pennsylvania will be lifted.
The deadline was set by the Wolf administration back on May 27, saying the order would be lifted by June 28 or when the state reaches 70% vaccination by adults - whichever comes first.
Last week, Governor Tom Wolf told NewsRadio KDKA that the mandate was not likely to be lifted prior to the deadline because the state wasn't on pace to reach the vaccination goal.
On Friday, June 25 the Wolf administration said 59.4% of the Pennsylvanians 18 and older have been fully vaccinated.
“We are continuing to make progress toward stopping the spread of COVID-19 throughout the commonwealth, as many Pennsylvanians have taken responsibility for their own health and the health of their communities by getting vaccinated,” Acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam said in a release.
“Even though the universal masking order will be lifted in a few days, businesses, organizations, health care providers and other entities maintain the option of requiring employees, guests or customers to wear a mask, regardless of their vaccination status.”
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The White House recently set a new vaccination goal for the country after acknowledging the U.S. will miss hitting the July 4 target of 70% vaccination rate.
The Biden administration said Thursday that it will likely take a few more weeks to reach the 70% mark.
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Pennsylvania lifted all other mitigation efforts in the state at the end of May, deferring to CDC guidelines.