Governor David Ige announced Tuesday that Hawaii will lift its mask mandate on March 25, making it the final U.S. state to do so.
“It’s taken the entire community to get to this point — with lowered case counts and hospitalizations,” Ige wrote in a tweet.
He added: “If we see another surge, we will be ready to reinstitute the mask policy, if needed.”
The announcement comes nearly two years after Hawaii first implemented a mask mandate in April 2020. The mandate remained in place that entire time, even when many other states lifted their mandates during times of low transmission. However, Hawaii did at one time require face coverings outdoors, a policy which was later lifted.
“I want to once again thank everyone for their hard work and commitment to keeping our community safe. I know this is a milestone many have been waiting for,” Ige said in a separate tweet.
Hawaii will also end its quarantine requirement for travelers on the same day. Under the requirements, out-of-state travelers were forced to show a negative Covid-19 test or proof of vaccination to avoid a five-day quarantine.
The state will still recommend mask-wearing in some indoor settings, including health care facilities. The governor said “organizations and businesses can choose to implement restrictions that they feel would be appropriate.”
Ige’s announcement came one day after Puerto Rico similarly ended its mask requirements and travel restrictions.
Oregon and Washington are the only other states that are still enforcing a statewide indoor mask mandate, both of which are set to end on Friday night. Many Democrat-led states lifted mask mandates last month as the Covid-19 surge driven by the Omicron variant waned.
While the CDC recommends that people continue masking indoors in areas with high levels of Covid-19, it said last week that more than 90 percent of U.S. residents currently live in communities with low or medium spread of Covid-19.
Hawaii’s Department of Health reported an average test positivity rate of 2.3 percent on Tuesday.
Source: National Review
