Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak responds to question from a reporter during a visit to the Horizon Ridge Wellness Clinic on East Flamingo Road Thursday, Dec. 23, 2021. The visit was part of Protect Nevadas Future week of action, a statewide effort to vaccinate children ages 5 to 11 years against COVID-19 from Dec. 18 to 23.
Published Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2022 | 12:20 p.m.
Updated Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2022 | 12:52 p.m.
Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak is expected to announce the lifting of the state’s mask mandate on Thursday, as the number of coronavirus cases continues to trend downward.
Sisolak is scheduled to speak at 10 a.m. Thursday to “provide an update on COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, along with the availability of COVID-19 test kits and therapeutics,” according to his office.
The Nevada Independent, citing sources, is reporting the announcement will also include lifting the mask mandate.
Nevada’s mask protocol is in line with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations that everyone wear masks in indoor public settings in areas of high transmission.
The guideline in Nevada has been in place since late July 2021, when the requirement was issued for counties with substantial or high transmission.
Clark County has consistently been under the mandate, and is listed as an area of high transmission, with 715 new COVID cases reported today. That is down significantly, however, from the 6,110 daily cases Jan. 7 at the peak of the omicron variant surge.
It’s unknown how removing mask guidelines would be implemented.
Casinos would still have to wait for guidance from the Nevada Gaming Control Board.
School districts would also have to determine how to approach masks, as the Clark County School District requires face coverings for all students, employees and school visitors. The Clark County School Board also meets on Thursday.
The pending decision in Nevada comes as mask mandates are falling across the country. Today, governors in Illinois and New York announced plans to end blanket mandates, though they left them in place for schools.
California announced it would end its indoor mask mandate for vaccinated people effective Feb. 16, except in schools.
