Officials from the city of Beverly Hills announced Monday night that the city would not be enforcing an indoor mask mandate if Los Angeles County issues a new health order that requires it, as is widely expected.
The decision was made during a Beverly Hills City Council meeting and was unanimously agreed upon, the city said.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health has been weighing the decision to implement an indoor mask mandate once again as coronavirus cases continue to rise due to the highly transmissible BA.5 variant which has become the predominant coronavirus mutation in the nation.
Earlier this month, Los Angeles County reached a certain threshold that determined community spread of COVID-19 was high, and Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said the county would have to lower transmission below the “high” level by July 28 to avoid the masking requirement returning.
If a mask mandate is reinstated by the Public Health Department, Beverly Hills would be included in the order. But Monday’s announcement made it clear that the city has no intention to enforce such an order.
