Gov. Kathy Hochul made several sweeping announcements Wednesday related to statewide mask mandates. Here are five key takeaways from her news conference.
1. This is the end of statewide mask-or-vax mandates for indoor businesses.
The executive order for that mandate was set to expire Thursday and Hochul said that will happen.
That means that you will be able to go into a restaurant, grocery store, gym or most other indoor businesses without a mask or showing proof of vaccination.
However, businesses will still have the right to require either masks or proof of vaccination if they choose to do so.
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2. The mask mandate for K-12 schools remains in place for now.
Hochul decided not to lift the mandate for universal masking in schools for now. That mandate is set to expire Feb. 21.
Instead, she laid out a new plan. Covid test kits will be distributed to students ahead of the February break that begins Feb. 21. Parents will be asked to test their children before they return to school the following Monday. Based on those results, along with other metrics including vaccination rates for children, will be considered as a new assessment is done the first week of March. Hochul said it's "possible" that the school mask mandate could be lifted as soon as March 7.
3. Masks are not going away.
Masks will continue to be required in certain places where there are large numbers of people congregating including:
• Health care facilities
• Jails and prisons
• Buses, trains and transportation hubs
• Homeless shelters and domestic violence shelters
• Child care facilities
4. You can still mask up if you want.
Hochul said she expects many people to continue to wear masks in certain situations, especially in crowds. She said that the state won't allow people to be discriminated against for wearing a mask.
5. Some mandates still exist in Erie County.
Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz announced Tuesday that the county would go along with the state in lifting its own indoor mask mandate. However, the county is still requiring masks in its buildings for employees and visitors through the end of February.
