U.S. Extends Face Mask Requirement for Planes, Trains, Buses

Though COVID-19 cases remain low and face mask requirements to slow the virus’ spread have vanished from most public settings, U.S. health officials Wednesday extended for two more weeks the requirement for public transportation that was set to expire Monday, citing concerns about a highly contagious strain of the virus.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the order, which applies to planes, trains, buses, boats, stations, airports, marinas and other and transit hubs, will remain in effect until at least May 3 while it monitors the BA.2 omicron subvariant now responsible for 86% of U.S. cases and a similar share worldwide.

“In order to assess the potential impact the rise of cases has on severe disease, including hospitalizations and deaths, and health care system capacity, the CDC order will remain in place at this time,” the agency said in a statement.

Face mask requirements have been among the most visible and controversial measures imposed to check the virus’ spread throughout the pandemic.

California ended its statewide mask mandate for indoor public places on Feb. 15, and ended the statewide requirement in schools March 12.

Most county health and public school districts have followed the state and dropped their requirements as well.

Under the CDC’s COVID-19 community level metrics revised in February to shift focus from new cases to hospitalizations and health care system capacity, 96% of counties across the U.S. are at the green “low” level. According to CDC data, the seven-day moving average of daily COVID-19 cases nationally fell to 24,815 March 29, a level not seen since early July before last year’s delta variant case surge.

But the CDC noted Wednesday that since early April, there have been increases in that 7-day moving average of cases, reaching 30,496 April 11, the most recent figure reported. Cases have increased more sharply in the Northeast, in states such as New York and New Jersey. But California has seen that 7-day moving average of daily cases rise to 2,823 April 11 from 1,989 April 4.

The BA.2 omicron subvariant helped drive significant case increases across Europe and Asia last month, though that also coincided in many cases with relaxation of public health measures.

In addition to announcing the mask mandate extension, the CDC Wednesday also updated its Travel Health Notice system for international destinations to better help travelers understand when the highest level of concern is most urgent.

The new system, effective April 18, will reserve Level 4 travel health notices for special circumstances including a rapidly escalating case trajectory, extremely high case counts, emergence of a new variant of concern or healthcare infrastructure collapse. Levels 3, 2, and 1 will continue to be primarily determined by 28-day incidence or case counts.

CDC uses Travel Health Notices to alert travelers and other audiences to health threats around the world and advise on how to protect themselves before, during, and after travel. With this new configuration, travelers will have a more actionable alert for when they should not travel to a certain destination (Level 4), regardless of vaccination status, until we have a clearer understanding of the COVID-19 situation at that destination.

The transportation mask mandate had been set to expire March 15, but the CDC last month extended it for another month, saying it needed more time to develop a more flexible requirement. That decision drew mixed responses from travelers at Bay Area airports, some frustrated and some grateful for the extension.

“I like the masks,” Anne Cummings of Saratoga, who is in her 80s, said Tuesday after arriving at Mineta San Jose International Airport following a trip visiting family throughout the southern United States. “I always feel very vulnerable to flus and colds when I’m on planes. Maybe you don’t have to wear it in the terminal, but when you’re sandwiched with people on the plane, I like wearing the mask.”

But fellow traveler Kevin, who was sitting at the baggage terminal without a mask and would not give his last name, was looking forward to seeing the requirement end.

“Everywhere there’s no masks,” he said. “So if people want to wear them they can, but they shouldn’t have to. I’ve been fully vaccinated twice and I’ve had COVID twice.”

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