Washington Governor Jay Inslee says the state will drop all coronavirus-related restrictions by June 30 at the latest.
But Cassie Sauer from the Washington State Hospital Association says, even after that date, mask mandates will remain in effect in most, if not all, hospitals in the state.“Hospitals are full of people who are vulnerable. They are full of newborn babies, neonatal intensive care unit. They are full of people getting bone marrow transplants, who are immunocompromised in very serious ways. It is incumbent upon us to be the most careful we possibly can be, which includes requiring visitors, even those who are fully vaccinated, to continue to wear a mask," she said.
Sauer says those mandates, even after the state fully reopens, don’t sit well with some hospital visitors who get angry when requested to wear masks.
She says the number of patients hospitalized for Covid in Washington continues to go down. The vast majority of those who receive care are unvaccinated and often younger than 40.