SLO County still has an indoor mask mandate. Why are so many people ignoring it?

In case you’re wondering, San Luis Obispo County’s indoor mask mandate has NOT been lifted.

But you wouldn’t know that from the number of unmasked mugs we’re seeing in just about every part of the county.

In too many places, customers are ignoring the “masks required” signs posted outside every business, and for the most part, stores and restaurants are giving them a pass.

In fact, plenty of employees also are going maskless as well when they interact with the public, even in indoor settings. Or they’re wearing their masks beneath their noses or down around their chins, where they do absolutely no good.

“We like to breathe oxygen,” was the feeble excuse one unmasked SLO store owner gave.

Oh, and she pointed out that her store is big — as if that somehow exempts her from following an order issued by County Public Health.

Would these same folks not bother to buckle their seat belts because, you know, they like to be free to move around a bit when they’re in a car?

Would they not bother with bicycle helmets, because they don’t want to mess up their hair?

Or would they go barefoot inside a restaurant because shoes are too constricting?

Of course not. So why ignore precautions when it comes to protecting themselves — and others — from the deadliest pandemic of our lifetimes?

Worldwide, more than 5 million people have died of COVID, and fatalities have been higher in the U.S. than in any other nation in the world.

Here in SLO County, 349 people have died. That includes six recent deaths reported by the Health Department on Tuesday. Health officials also reported that the county added 117 new cases since Friday.

More bad news: As of Tuesday, 25 SLO County residents were hospitalized for severe COVID-19 complications, with six in intensive care.

Yet overall, case numbers have been trending down over the past several weeks. But hold on — we still don’t meet these criteria for lifting the indoor mask mandate:

• The county must reach the moderate, or yellow, COVID-19 transmission tier, as defined by the CDC. (SLO County is still in the highest red tier.)
• COVID-19 hospitalizations are low and stable and hospital capacity is sufficient to meet the needs of all patients, in the judgment of the County Health officer.

With the holidays approaching and people gathering indoors, health officials are worried about another surge.

Sure, we have vaccines now, but only 66% of eligible SLO County residents have been fully vaccinated. That’s not great, especially with vaccines so readily available. Plus, even fully vaccinated people can come down with breakthrough infections.

Face coverings provide another layer of protection, especially when we’re out in public and have no idea of vaccination status of the person next to us at the beauty salon or the gym.

In other words, this is not the time to get lackadaisical about masking up.

After all, school kids are required to wear masks practically all day — and adults can’t be bothered to put on a mask to run into the store for 10 or 15 minutes?

And while we’re at it, are any government agencies even paying lip service to enforcing the mask rule? Or has the mandate become a joke?

We saw what happened previously, when we let down our guard and the Delta variant took off, leading to more deaths and more misery.

That can’t happen again.

Get fully vaccinated.

Do your friends, family and neighbors a favor an wear a mask whenever and wherever it’s required. It’s a minor inconvenience that just might save your life — or someone else’s.

This story was originally published November 3, 2021 at 5:30 AM.