LA County Will Keep Mask Mandates On Public Transportation

The entirety of Los Angeles County will be required to wear masks on public transportation and indoor transit hubs starting on Friday despite the recent federal strike down of mask mandates.

LA county's Public Health Department announced the Health Officer Order on Thursday for all individuals over the age of two regardless of their COVID-19 vaccination status. The order will apply to trains, subways, buses, taxis, ride-shares, and transportation hubs for those services including but not limited to airports, bus terminals, train stations, subways stations, and seaports.

The department said that it will reassess the indoor masking requirement when "COVID-19 community transmission in Los Angeles County drops to the Moderate level, or the CDC’s assessment is that an order requiring masking in the transportation corridor is no longer necessary for the protection of the public’s health, or within 30 days of this Order," a press release read.

Pubic Health Director Barbara Ferrer told reporters on Thursday during an online briefing that based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) guidance, "at this point having that requirement in place is necessary for the public's health, and that resonates with us."

ABC 7 Los Angeles reported that after the federal court ruling Monday that struck down the federal mask mandate for public transportation, many transporation authorities in Los Angeles County dropped their mask mandates, including commuter trains, busses and rail lines, and the county's two airports, Los Angeles International Airport and Hollywood Burbank Airport.

LA County's Public Health Department order reinstates mask mandates in all of those settings. Ferrer also told reporters that the "whiplash" of rapidly changing orders makes her feel "really, really sorry" for residents experiencing confusion.

Ferrer also said praised the CDC because it never changed its mask recomendations for public transit and criticized the decision of U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle, calling her "a federal judge with little experience in public health."

Mizelle ruled that the CDC overstepped its authority by requiring masks on transportation systems. The Justice Department has promised to appeal Mizelle's decision and the CDC stands behind its authority to require mask mandates in public transportation settings.