Los Angeles County’s Director of Public Health Barbara Ferrer announced this week that mask mandates in the county are likely to remain in place into 2023.
Mortality rates for vaccinated residents of L.A. County have remained steady for months, but deaths rates for the unvaccinated continue to rise, Ferrer warned at a press conference on Thursday.
“By October, the risk of death for unvaccinated people was 41 times higher than the risk of death for vaccinated people,” she noted.
Ferrer said it was still too early to determine whether the county was experiencing a fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The county’s lead health official also explained that cooler temperatures heading into winter may be slowing down infection rates; but those could spike again once spring arrives.
“I think we have to do what we know will work,” Ferrer said. “Vaccinate more people and wear masks when indoors. Again, because it is a powerful way to prevent infection.”
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