Lancaster County Health Director Pat Lopez announced Tuesday afternoon that mask mandate will not be extended. It will expire on Thursday.
But she says this does not mean that the pandemic is over and it does not mean no more masks. “We strongly recommend people continue to wear masks indoors, we strongly recommend that businesses require their employees to wear their masks.
Lopez says they allowed the mandate to expire after giving people enough time to get themselves and their children vaccinated and to get their boosters.
Lopez confirmed Tuesday that the first case of the COVID-19 Omicron variant has been reported in Lancaster County. Lancaster County’s COVID-19 risk dial will remain in elevated orange.
She says the positivity rate is still above 14% and one death was reported on Tuesday, a woman in her 80’s. So far in the month of December, 17 people have died from the virus.