L.A. County keeps mask mandate at airports, public transit

Despite recent changes at the federal level, Los Angeles County is continuing to require travelers to mask up when aboard public transit or in indoor transportation hubs such as airports.

The new health officer order, which went into effect at 12:01 a.m. Friday, means the nation’s most populous county again has face-covering rules that go beyond those set by the state.

On Wednesday, the California Department of Public Health unveiled its own updated guidance that strongly recommends residents mask up when using public transit, though it’s no longer required.

L.A. County’s mask order covers commuter trains, subways, buses, taxis, Ubers and Lyfts; as well as indoor transportation hubs, including bus terminals, subway stations, seaports and other indoor port terminals, according to Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer. It applies to everyone ages 2 and older, regardless of their COVID-19 vaccination status.

The order affects Los Angeles International Airport and Hollywood Burbank Airport. Ferrer said she expects the Long Beach public health department, which operates independently of the county, to adopt a similar order. Pasadena, which also has its own public health agency, confirmed it will align with the county’s mask-wearing rules.

The local mask-wearing order applies to airline passengers once they disembark their plane and does not extend to people once they have boarded.

Local transit agencies began announcing the return of mask orders on public transportation. Mask use became optional on the Metrolink commuter rail system Monday night and L.A. County’s Metro system Tuesday, but mask wearing was again required starting Friday.

In opting to maintain the mandate, Ferrer cited both the continued elevated level of coronavirus transmission countywide and a recent assessment from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that, “at this time, an order requiring masking in the indoor transportation corridor remains necessary for the public health.”

“That resonates with us,” Ferrer told reporters during a briefing Thursday. “We think and agree that public transit settings … and public transportation hubs that are indoors are places where, A) There’s a lot of mingling; B) They’re often crowded; and C) In some of those settings, it’s really hard to have adequate ventilation.

“As soon as CDC determined that it was important to keep this masking requirement in place, we went ahead and aligned with the CDC,” she added.

The CDC had intended to keep the federal mask order on public transportation systems such as buses, trains and airplanes in place at least until May 3, pending further review of increasing coronavirus cases nationally. But that timeline was upended by a court ruling striking down the mandate earlier this week.

The Justice Department has since moved to appeal the decision.

Ferrer said this latest health order is not meant as a precursor to the reinstitution of broader mask mandates, such as in schools or other indoor public settings.

She did, however, acknowledge that some residents may feel a touch of whiplash as many airlines, transit systems and commuting companies, including Uber and Lyft, announced they would lift masking requirements for passengers following the court ruling.

“I think it’s important to note that the CDC did not change their requirements/recommendation, their guidance,” Ferrer said. “A judge, a federal judge with little experience in public health, actually determined that and questioned … whether CDC had the authority to issue that regulation.”

L.A. County is not the first local entity to require mask use on public transit in the aftermath of Monday’s federal court ruling. On Tuesday, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey said the mask mandate would remain in effect at John F. Kennedy and LaGuardia airports in New York City, based on local public health guidance.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Tuesday that masks are still required on New York City’s subway and bus system, in accordance with recommendations from public health officials.

The transit agency that serves Milwaukee County in Wisconsin has also retained a mask-wearing order on its bus system.

Officials acknowledge it’s not ideal to have local orders at odds with other areas of the country but blamed the mismatch of masking policies on the judicial action.

“While it would be much [more] preferable to have — as the CDC had previously mandated — a requirement that covers the entire country until the legal challenges are addressed, it’s important that local jurisdictions take direction from the CDC on what measures are needed to protect the public health,” Ferrer said.

“This was not a decision by the federal government that masks were no longer needed in very congested settings like public transit, our buses, in New York City, the subway. But it was overturned by the court for procedural reasons,” Hochul said Wednesday.

Ferrer also expressed concern about…