Mask mandates removed in Ada and Valley counties. What impact will that have?
Mask mandates in Ada and Valley counties are no more, as the orders that enacted the mandates are now simply advisories.
During a Friday morning meeting, board members of the Boise-based Central District Health voted unanimously to remove the health orders for the two counties, which have been in place for several months.
Ada County’s health order went into effect on June 24, 2020, while Valley County’s order went into effect on Aug. 11. The health orders that contained the mandates will now move to advisories in both counties.
On Friday afternoon, the city of Boise reacted quickly by putting its own measure back into effect, meaning masks are required citywide.
The CDH health orders included the possibility of a misdemeanor charge for those accused of violating it. With the advisory being issued, the potential of a misdemeanor is no longer on the table.
It’s unclear whether individual stores and restaurants will relax mask requirements, although Boise’s order means they will stay in place in the city.
The Village at Meridian plans to let individual store owners and operators decide whether to continue requiring masks, manager Hugh Crawford said.
“Each business is able to adapt to this change as they feel is best for the business, their employees and their customers,” Crawford said by email.
It’s the same for members of the Idaho Lodging & Restaurant Association, the Idaho Retailers Association and the Idaho State Pharmacy Association, said Pam Eaton, CEO and president of the three groups. It will be up to each owner to decide how to operate the business, she said, but she imagines many will continue to ask customers and employees to continue wearing masks.
“There are a lot of business owners that will want to continue to do whatever it takes to keep their employees and their guests and customers safe while we work to get more of the population vaccinated,” Eaton said by email. “So I suspect there will not be a mass, sudden change in protocols.”
The Boise Co-op has stores in both Boise, where masks continue to be required, and in Meridian, where the mandate was lifted by the Central District Health order. Masks are mandatory in both stores.
“At this time, our mask policy has not changed and we are continuing to require them in our stores,” spokesperson Mo Valko said by email.
Don’t expect any changes at the Treasure Valley’s largest grocery stores., either Albertsons, Fred Meyer, Walmart and Winco all have policies requiring anyone entering their stores to wear masks.
“Out of an abundance of caution and to protect the safety of our customers and associates, we will maintain our exiting policy and signage,” Fred Meyer spokesperson Jeffery Temple said by email.
Spokespersons for the other chains could not be reached Friday afternoon for comment.
A number of hotel chains also require guests and employees to wear masks at all of their U.S. properties.
“In an effort to protect all who visit and work in our hotels, we require the wearing of face coverings by guests and visitors in the indoor public areas of our hotels in the U.S.,” a Hilton spokesperson said by email.
Dr. Ted Epperly, a member of the board, emphasized that the lifting of the orders does not mean that the COVID-19 pandemic is over. He encouraged everyone to continue wearing masks, physically distancing from others and taking precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Included in the now-former orders were limits on gatherings of 50 people. But gatherings should be limited to fewer than 50 people, with some exceptions, according to Idaho Gov. Brad Little’s Idaho Rebounds plan, which is in Stage 3.
The new CDH advisory implores individuals to avoid large indoor gatherings with more than 50 people present. The city of Boise order prohibits such gatherings.
Valley County Commissioner and CDH board member Elt Hasbrouck first proposed the move to lift the orders and implement advisories, saying he believes the coronavirus is under control. He said the two other Valley County commissioners agreed that the order should be lifted.
“In the beginning the whole intent of the orders were to keep the hospitals from getting overwhelmed, so that we did not get to critical care,” Hasbrouck said. “And I think we’ve done that.”
Central District Health Director Russ Duke emphasized in a news release about the change that this is no time to be relaxed about the virus.
“We want to remind our communities that all four counties continue to see community spread, which means there is enough virus circulating, making it often impossible to determine where or how someone was exposed. This puts all of us at higher risk,” he said. “With people continuing to make good choices, we will all benefit.
“ ... We want the updated advisory to be our community’s ongoing commitment to practice measures that will allow our data to continue on a downward trend.”
Raul Labrador, a former U.S. Republican congressman and new addition to the CDH board, spoke in favor of removing the order, as well as listing other officials in Ada County who supported the move.
Prior to the vote on the Ada and Valley health orders, news broke of Idaho’s first confirmed case of a COVID-19 variant — from South Africa — which was reported in an adult man living in Southwest Idaho. Idaho health officials announced the man recently traveled outside the United States and “is thought to have been exposed before returning to Idaho,” according to a news release from the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.
Epperly pointed to the confirmed variant case as a reason for the community to remain cautious, as the coronavirus pandemic is still ongoing. There were 210 confirmed cases reported statewide Thursday night, and 10 deaths. And though the positivity rate has improved to 5.8%, its best number since June, it’s still not quite below the 5% mark, which experts say is needed to show control over the spread.
The U.K. coronavirus variant, Epperly said, is more infectious and can cause more severe illness. Though he supported the move to an advisory, Epperly said the move should not be an excuse to ignore common-sense health and safety measures.
“I don’t want all of us (and) the community to think that somehow because the numbers have decreased and the vaccine is starting to roll out that this is all now on the way (out),” Epperly said.
This story was originally published February 19, 2021 at 11:36 AM.
