US surgeon general defends Los Angeles' reinstatement of indoor mask mandate
Dr Vivek Murthy, US Surgeon General (File Photo).
Vivek Murthy, the US surgeon general, defended the renewal of the mask mandate in Los Angeles on Sunday, saying that other areas may have to follow.
The city of Los Angeles is the only US city that has reinstated its indoor mask mandate.
Expressing his concern for the COVID-19 outlook in the fall, Murthy said that amid a surge of cases of theDelta variant, a highlytransmissiblevariant of coronavirus, heexpected other areas to follow suit.
"In areas where there are low numbers of vaccinated people, or where cases are rising, it's very reasonable for counties to take more mitigation measures like the mask rules you see coming out in LA, and I anticipate that will happen in other parts of the country," Murthy told ABC.
After months of decline, during the past two weeks, there has been an unprecedented 135 per cent increase in COVID-19 cases in the US, with increases seen in nearly every state. LA has also experienced a significant increase.
According to Hilda Solis, a Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors member, in the last few days, they have had almost 1,900 cases, while over 460 patients were admitted to their intensive-care units (ICUs).
"This is very disturbing, and of course, as responsible elected officials, we have to do something," she added.
Health officials are working to reassure the public that vaccines are safe and effective, but vaccine skepticism, driven by misinformation, has grown in many places.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's director, Rochelle Walensky, reports that almost 97 per cent of those hospitalised in June were unvaccinated.
According to available figures, only about 48 per cent of Americans are fully vaccinated, while for thoseaged 18 and older, the figure stands at 68 per cent.
Due to the emergence of the Delta variant and the lag in vaccinations, Murthy says that he is extremely worried about the prospects for the fall, particularly as unvaccinated children under 12 are set to return to school and adults plan to return to working from the office.
"What I worry about," he said, "is that we still have millions of people in our country who are not vaccinated. We have to still protect our children under 12 who don't have a vaccine."
The US President Joe Biden and other administration officials have also harshly criticised social media platforms for spreading misinformation about coronavirus.
Murthy, while talking to CNN, said that these, "platforms have to recognize they played a major role in the increase in speed and scale with which misinformation is spreading."
(With inputs from agencies)