Ross: The bare face countdown is on
Jun 16, 2021, 5:33 AM | Updated: 10:05 am
A fan adjusts their mask before the game between the Seattle Mariners and the San Francisco Giants at T-Mobile Park on April 02, 2021 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
(Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
I had my two-month beard cleanup yesterday. And it was like nothing had changed since last year. You must arrive masked up at the door, no early arrivals, sanitize your hands in the washroom. Only when it was time to trim the beard did the mask come off.
But yesterday, King County vaccinations finally reached 70% for residents age 16-plus, which means once those second shots take full effect in two weeks, the county has 70% immunity. And according to the King County Public Health Department website, that means the county’s indoor masking directive will expire on June 29, one day before the state COVID order expires.
Once they have both expired, that means the State of Washington and the County of King are OK with going face-naked indoors and outdoors. But does that mean you actually can?
The Washington State Department of Health’s web page still says, “If you are not fully vaccinated, if you venture out in public you must continue to wear face coverings and keep a safe distance.”
The CDC order requiring masks on trains and ferries and buses and planes remains in effect. That includes boarding, disembarking, and for the duration of the trip.
Plus, businesses are still free to set their own rules.
So you might have to keep carrying a mask anyway, just in case. From what I can tell, if a business has a policy of masking up, you would still have to mask up.
But ready or not, we must all prepare for the return of the human face, and many of you who’ve been flashing the side-eye every time you see a pair of nostrils are going to have to break the habit.
Of course, if you’ve gotten used to your mask, or you’ve been wearing it to make a political statement, you will be free to continue wearing it – except for your mug shot after you’re arrested for assaulting someone who wasn’t wearing one.
That rule has not changed.
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