mask mandate

Gov. Charlie Baker said Friday that Massachusetts will update its reopening plans early next week. “The new @CDC guidance is great news,” he said on Twitter. “We will be updating our reopening plans early next week.” Baker also noted that the state is on track to vaccinate over 4 million residents soon. “Please stay safe while we prepare next steps…

Maine Gov. Janet Mills announced Friday that Maine is dropping its indoor mask order for fully vaccinated people and lifting the physical distancing requirement at indoor public settings like restaurants and bars, effective May 24. The decision is based on new guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that allows fully vaccinated Americans not to wear face…

Maine is also lifting physical distancing requirements at indoor public settings where people are eating or drinking and therefore would be removing their face covering.

Following federal recommendations to relax mask rules for fully vaccinated people, more New England states are dropping their mask orders. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday that people who are fully vaccinated — meaning two weeks after their final shot — no longer need to wear masks outdoors in crowds and in most indoor settings. “The…

Hours after federal mask rules were eased indoors and outdoors for people who are fully vaccinated, the Baker administration announced how it would proceed in Massachusetts. For now, there won’t be any change to the Bay State’s mask order, which was recently relaxed for people outdoors. But the administration will update its restrictions soon, Gov. Charlie Baker’s press secretary...

For now, there won’t be any change to the Massachusetts mask order after federal mask rules were eased indoors and outdoors for people who are fully vaccinated.

The city of Boston will reopen its public libraries to in-person visitors starting next month and increase its number of youth programs as COVID-19 cases continue to drop, Mayor Kim Janey announced Tuesday. In a press conference, Janey said the library system will re-open in June for limited in-person services, prioritizing programs to help residents recover economically and catch up…

Thousands of parents are calling on Gov. Charlie Baker to relax the mask mandate for children in Massachusetts. In a letter Thursday to the governor, a grassroots group of approximately 5,000 parents said children should be allowed to ditch the masks for outdoor sports, summer camps and recess, even if they can’t stay six feet apart. “I haven’t seen...

Thousands of parents are calling on Gov. Charlie Baker to relax the mask mandate for children in Massachusetts.

While the outdoor mask mandate has been relaxed nationwide and statewide, both Salem and Brookline public health officials decided to have people in those communities continue to mask up. Most people NBC10 Boston spoke with Monday had no problem with it. “It’s better safe than sorry,” Brookline resident Kashif Khan said. “I actually feel more comfortable with the mask...

It seems the hustle and bustle of Boston is building itself back, and the scales have tipped on outdoor comfortability without masks. Saturday, many roamed maskless, and Gov. Charlie Baker says that’s okay when outside and six feet apart.

Officials in Brookline, Mass are still requiring that masks be worn outdoors in the town despite the state lifting its outdoor mask mandate. Face coverings are now only required outside in Massachusetts in public places when it is not possible to socially distance — or when required for other reasons, including at outdoor events, according to Gov. Charlie Baker’s revised…

People can now take off their masks outdoors in Massachusetts, provided they can maintain social distance, in the first of a series of reopening measures aimed at stimulating the state’s economy. Earlier this week, Gov. Charlie Baker announced that his administration would lift the state’s outdoor mask mandate, effective Friday, and relax other COVID-related business restrictions beginning May 10....

People can now take off their masks outdoors in Massachusetts, provided they can maintain social distance, in the first of a series of reopening measures aimed at stimulating the state’s economy.

When should people wear face masks? How should businesses be screening for coronavirus? Are vaccinated people who get exposed to COVID required to quarantine? All that and more is covered in New Hampshire’s new document of COVID guidance, called the “Universal Best Practices.” It replaces the “Safer at Home 2.0” business guidance that’s been in place since March 2020.

More than a year into the COVID-19 restrictions that have reshaped much of public life, Massachusetts now has a target date for when its business and capacity limits are set to be lifted: Aug. 1, 2021. That date could come earlier depending on key public health metrics around vaccination, hospitalizations and case counts, Gov. Charlie Baker said.

With Massachusetts’ outdoor mask order set to be lifted Friday, and with the federal mask mandate now relaxed for fully-vaccinated Americans, some parents are wondering where that leaves children who aren’t eligible to be vaccinated. “I do see a lot of parents with children … not enforcing them wearing a mask, and I get it, the kids are going to…

New England states have lifted or made changes to their mask mandates and announced further reopening measures as the federal government this week issued new guidance on face coverings. The moves come as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention unveiled new guidance on outdoor mask-wearing for unvaccinated people Tuesday and as more residents get vaccinated against COVID-19. Here’s...

Massachusetts is poised to take additional steps toward normalcy under Gov. Charlie Baker’s latest COVID reopening timeline. Baker’s suite of short- and longer-term updates to the state’s reopening plan, released Tuesday, positions Massachusetts to fully reopen by August. It starts with the state’s outdoor mask mandate expiring Friday, followed by other COVID-related business restrictions that relax next month. Starting...

More than a year into the COVID-19 restrictions that have reshaped much of public life, Massachusetts is positioned to fully reopen by August