A family walks on a Santa Cruz County beach in masks.
A family walks on a Santa Cruz County beach in masks.
(Kevin Painchaud / Lookout Santa Cruz)
COVID 2022

Masks no longer required in most outdoor situations throughout Santa Cruz County

Santa Cruz County announced new mask guidelines for vaccinated and unvaccinated people on Tuesday morning.

As of Tuesday, masks are no longer required outdoors in Santa Cruz County for vaccinated people, with the exception of “live performances, parades and other close-proximity outdoor gatherings of large crowds,” according to a press release from the county’s health services agency.

People who haven’t been fully vaccinated for COVID-19 “must still wear face coverings outdoors anytime physical distancing cannot be maintained.”

The increase in infections in Santa Cruz County is small and “expected.” It is largely due to transmission of COVID-19...

These new guidances are a result of the California Department of Public Health announcing yesterday that it would align its face covering guidelines with the Centers for Disease Control, and now Santa Cruz County has changed its rules to align with the CDC and CDPH.

Face coverings are still required in public indoor settings such as stores or public transit, or anywhere multiple households are mixing.

There is one exception for fully vaccinated people in cases where multiple households are mixing. According to the new rules, fully vaccinated people are allowed to gather “in private indoor settings with other fully vaccinated individuals, or low-risk individuals from a single household, without wearing a face covering or maintaining physical distancing.”