Worcester hasn’t rescinded its mask mandate yet, after all.
During a meeting Monday, the city’s Board of Health voted 3-2 to end the requirement, effective Feb. 18. However, city officials now say board member Gary Rosen — who supported dropping the mandate — had not taken his oath of office prior to the meeting, meaning he was ineligible to participate in the vote and a majority did not approve the proposal.
But despite the procedural error, the city said the mandate is still on track to end Feb. 18. Board members will hold a new vote at their Feb. 16 meeting.
The city said Rosen, who joined the board in January, was sworn in Thursday.
Worcester’s city manager and medical director have recommended the Board of Health rescind the requirement, citing a decline in new COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations. They told the board during the meeting Monday that people should now have the “personal choice” to wear a mask or not.
Rosen agreed.
“It’s safe now for us to not require our residents in this city to wear the mask,” he said during the meeting.
Board members Chareese Allen and Khanh Van Tran voted against ending the requirement, noting that COVID-19 related-deaths and intensive care unit admissions — which usually rise weeks after a bump in new infections — are still increasing. They also pointed to the city’s vaccination and booster rates, 60% and 26%, respectively, which lag behind statewide averages.
“A better time [to end the mandate] might be a little later than now,” Van Tran said. “Respiratory viruses tend to be worse in the winter.”
