Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon agrees with Governor Kathy Hochul’s end of the statewide mask mandate. The decision will end the requirement for businesses to ask for proof of full vaccination or require mask-wearing in most indoor settings. McMahon sees it as a turning point in the state’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“People need to be comfortable with their own decisions, but many people have been vaccinated. They’ve been boosted. The prevalence in the community has gotten down to really an acceptable risk, and so we’re happy to see the mitigation move,” McMahon said.
In the past week, COVID cases in Onondaga county have decreased by 32%, and McMahon adds hospitalizations have decreased. Despite the drops, the county continues to struggle with the loss of life. McMahon plans to rely on metrics for any future decisions and hopes the decrease in cases will carry over to hospitalizations.
“We’re seeing things turn in hospitalizations, and they’ll continue to decelerate as there’s a ten day lag essentially between drop in cases and hospitalizations. In addition to that, if we continue to drop at the levels we are week over week with cases, we’ll probably be around 20 cases per 100,000 for our community next week, which is certainly a much better place than where we have been over the last six months."
McMahon is calling for a metric to determine when mask mandates could be lifted in schools. Governor Hochul plans to make a decision on ending the requirement of masks in school in March. Masks are also still required at health care facilities, certain types of shelters, and public transportation. With the end of the mandate, McMahon shares now is the time to head in the direction where people can begin to make a choice.
“I think it’s all about hospitalizations. And we’ll continue to work very closely with congregate settings and senior facilities. Those are our most vulnerable, and so we’ll continue to look at mask mandates likely in those facilities. But related to the rest of the public at large, these numbers are getting very close to being what is acceptable risk for us to live our lives.”
The county will continue to offer testing locations, and masks will be provided to those who still want to wear them.