INGLEWOOD, Calif. (KNX) — Sunday, the Los Angeles Rams celebrated National Football League victory - toppling the San Francisco 49ers 20-17 in the NFC Championship. But the number of people unmasked in the stands, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, is also a hot topic. L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger said the crowd proved it’s time to re-evaluate the strict mask policy in L.A. County.
"Masking rules set by the state and county weren’t followed consistently by everyone at yesterday’s NFC Championship," Barger said in a statement Monday. "Instead, we saw individuals choosing to mask up based on calculated personal risk."
Barger joined KNX In Depth Monday to discuss how to do away with what she called a "blanket COVID-19 masking policy" in L.A. County, and instead align with the state's less restrictive policy.
"When I looked at the people in the stadium, three quarters of them were not wearing their masks," Barger said. "I didn’t hear an uproar today from [The Department of] Public Health saying that the sky is falling."
Ahead of the state's re-evaluation of the masking policy on Feb. 16 and Super Bowl LVI on Feb. 13, Barger said she believes that the County's 78% percent vaccination rate makes it clear that it is time to be less restrictive when it comes to mask policy.
"Is [a mask] another ounce of prevention, obviously yes. I had omicron, I wear my mask, I [still] got it," she said.
"But at the same time, we’re seeing the numbers coming down...I think it’s time to re-evaluate and quite frankly just realign with the state."
Barger said as the Super Bowl approaches, she would prefer to have policy reflect that — since SoFi Stadium is an outdoor venue — masks are voluntary, especially, Barger said, if the policy will once again not be enforced.
"If yesterday had been so serious, there would have been an uproar from public health," she said, defending the statement by adding that she has worked with the department before and knows them to be very vocal when it comes to this type of situation.
SoFi stadium is capable of holding thousands and was the first to allow
fans to return to its 70,240-seat venue in 2021. Total seating inside can expand to 100,240 for larger events, according to SportingNews.com.
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