Secretary of Health's Mask Order FAQ
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Updated September 27, 2021 DOH 820-202 Secretary of Health’s Mask Order FAQ Introduction This Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document provides clarification of the Secretary of Health’s Mask Order and as answers to other common questions. Please see the Additional Resources section at the bottom for more information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Labor & Industries (L&I), the Department of Health (DOH), and the Washington State Governor’s Office. This document will be updated frequently with common questions and clarifications as needed. Definition of Fully Vaccinated You are considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19: • Two weeks after you have received the second dose in a two-dose series (Pfizer- BioNTech or Moderna) or • Two weeks after you have received a single-dose vaccine (Johnson and Johnson/Janssen) COVID-19 vaccines must be authorized for emergency use, licensed, or otherwise approved by the FDA; or listed for emergency use or otherwise approved by the World Health Organization. If it has been less than two weeks since your final dose, or if you still need to get your second dose, you are NOT fully protected. Keep taking all prevention measures until you are fully vaccinated. General When am I required to wear a mask? At this time, regardless of vaccination status, you are required to wear a mask while indoors in a: • Public or private place where anyone from outside your household is present. o Public place, like a library, grocery store, or museum. o Private place, like a private business that only allows members. ▪ This does NOT include private residences. You and your guests are not required to wear masks while in your home. When am I not required to wear a mask? At this time, regardless of vaccination status, you are not required to wear a mask in the situations listed below. Even when not required, you are encouraged to carry a mask with you.
Businesses and establishments can choose to require masks for everyone, regardless of vaccination status. See the “rules of the room” information below for more information. • When you are outdoors unless at an event with 500 or more people, though DOH strongly recommends that you wear a mask in any crowed outdoor settings, regardless of your vaccination status; • While you are working indoors in a non-public area as long as you are fully vaccinated and only other employees are present; • While you are working alone indoors. You are working alone if you are isolated from interactions with others and have little or no expectation of in-person interruptions. Examples include being the sole occupant in an office with a closed door who is unlikely to be visited, operating a crane isolated in an enclosed cab, delivering packages with no face-to-face interaction with others, or providing janitorial services in a building alone; • When you are at a small indoor gathering in a private residence; • While you are actively playing or training for, coaching, or officiating indoor sports. This exception does not include indoor gyms and other fitness facilities, such as dance, yoga, and martial arts facilities; • While you are swimming or engaged in other water sports or water recreation; • While you are actively engaged in a performing arts performance, leading religious services, or engaged in other similar activities, subject to the authorization and requirements of the Department of Health, including any vaccination requirements; • While you are eating or drinking; • While you are showering bathing, or engaging in other personal hygiene or grooming activities that require removing your mask; • When you are communicating with a person who is deaf or hard of hearing and not wearing a mask is essential to communication. If possible, a face shield or face shield with a cloth drape may be used in this situation; • While you are obtaining a service or engaged in a transient activity that requires temporary and very brief removal of your mask; • While you are sleeping; • When necessary to confirm your identity; • When you are required not to wear a mask by federal or state law; or • When you are unable to put on a mask due to an emergency. Who is exempt from wearing a face covering? The following people are exempt from the requirement to wear a face covering: • Children younger than five years old; o Children who are younger than two years old should never wear a face covering due to the risk of suffocation. o Children who are two, three or four years old, with the assistance and close supervision of an adult, are strongly recommended to wear a face covering at all times in public settings when around non-household members; and • People with a medical condition, mental health condition, developmental or cognitive condition, or disability that prevents wearing a face covering. This includes, but is not limited to, people with a medical condition for whom wearing a face covering could 2
obstruct breathing or who are unconscious, incapacitated, or otherwise unable to remove a face covering without assistance. I don’t feel safe without a mask. Can I wear a mask, even when it’s not required? • Yes, of course. There are some occasions when you may be asked to remove your mask for a moment, like for identification purposes. The Secretary of Health and the Governor have mentioned “the rules of the room.” What does that mean? • Businesses, organizations, facilities, and establishments have the right to set their own rules for wearing masks in their establishment or facility. o Businesses are required to follow all requirements in L&I directives and may choose to require masks in settings (e.g. outdoors) where the Secretary of Health or the Governor does not require it. • Local public health officials may also put more protective mask orders in place to limit transmission in the community. o These rules can be more protective than the Secretary of Health’s Mask Order, but they cannot be less protective. Everyday Life and Recreation Are face coverings or masks required at outdoor events? • At outdoor events, public or private, where there are 500 or more people present, masks are required. This applies to any type of outdoor event, including but not limited to State Fairs, county fairs, concerts, sporting events with seating (professional, college, pro-am, amateur, recreational, club, K-12), weddings, horse races and rodeos, auto races, golf tournaments, outdoor sales, car shows, festivals and fairs with tickets/registration and controlled entrances and exits. o At these large outdoor events, masks are not required for the athletes or performers while they are actively engaged in the sport or activity. • If the outdoor event has less than 500 people, DOH strongly recommends that all people wear face coverings or masks, regardless of their vaccination status, if the event is or becomes crowded. If you are not able to consistently maintain distance from people outside your household, you should consider wearing a mask. For events where there are 500 or more people present, who is included in the count of 500 people or more? • Everyone at a single location or facility, including attendees, spectators, staff, volunteers, officials, performers, athletes, adults and children. If an event or gathering has a cumulative attendance of 500 over a number of consecutive days, are masks required? • No. The limit of 500 people is at any one location or facility at any one time. If organizers of outdoor events or gatherings take steps to strictly limit people present to no more 3
than 500 people at any one time, they are not subject to the facial covering requirement. At a sports complex with multiple fields, is each field considered one location or does the total amount of people at the entire sports complex need to be combined to see if it exceeds 500? • Each field is considered a separate location. The requirement for the outdoor facial coverings requirement to go into effect is when more than 500 people are present at a single field. What is considered a “small indoor gathering” for the purpose of the Secretary’s order? • A gathering of around ten or fewer people. The exception to the mask requirement for small indoor gatherings applies only when at a private residence. What if I have a small indoor gathering at a business or a private, non-residential indoor location not open to the public? • The exception to the face covering requirement for small gatherings applies only to gatherings in private residences. Face coverings are required at any indoor gathering held somewhere that is not a private residence. What is considered an “event or gathering” for the purpose of the Secretary’s order? • Generally, something that takes place at a pre-determined time, but not on a daily basis, with tickets or registered participants and controlled entrances and exits. Who is responsible for enforcing the facial coverings requirement, the event or gathering organizer or the owner of the facility where the event or gathering takes place? • The organizer of the event or gathering. Do I need to wear a mask when I go to public places like grocery store, a restaurant or library? • Yes, you are required to wear a mask in public indoor spaces. How about for outdoor parks, community centers and zoos? • You are not required to wear a mask when you visit outdoor areas of parks, community centers, zoos, and similar outdoor businesses or establishments, regardless of your vaccination status unless you are at an event with 500 or more people present. o Sometimes these outdoor settings can get crowded even if there are not 500 or more people present and when this happens, DOH recommends you wear a mask, regardless of vaccination status. • You are required to wear a mask in any public indoor spaces of parks, community centers zoos, and similar outdoor businesses or establishments. 4
• Regardless of the Secretary’s Health Order, if the facility requires masks, you must adhere to their rules. See the “rules of the room” information above for more information. What other outdoor places can I visit where I do not have to wear a mask? • Outdoor places where you may not have to wear a mask include, but are not limited to public parks (local county or state), campgrounds, golf courses (when a tournament is not occurring), fishing derbies, zoos, arboretums, nature preserves, community clean ups, neighborhood clean ups, neighborhood garage sales, races (running, biking, boating, etc.), fun runs, charity and group bike rides, charity and group walks, farmers markets without controlled entrances and exits; unless you are at an event with 500 or more people present. o Sometimes these outdoor settings can get crowded even if there are not 500 or more people present and when this happens, DOH recommends you wear a mask, regardless of vaccination status. • You are required to wear a mask in any public indoor spaces of these outdoor areas. • Regardless of the Secretary’s Health Order, if the facility requires masks, you must adhere to their rules. See the “rules of the room” information above for more information. Do I need to wear a mask when using public transportation? • Yes, this federal order remains in place, requiring everyone age 2 and older to wear masks in indoor areas of public transportation. Regardless of vaccination status, you must wear a mask when using the following modes of public transportation: o Air travel o Buses o Trains o Subways • You are also required to wear a mask while indoors in public transportation hubs, such as airports, bus stations, and so forth. • CDC does not require masks in outdoor areas of public transportation or transportation hubs. • For more information, please see the DOH Travel During the COVID-19 Pandemic webpage. Am I required to wear a mask while participating in performing arts activities? • Outdoor Performing Arts: o You are not required to wear a mask for performing arts activities that take place outdoors, regardless of vaccination status. o When performing high aerosol-generating activities, like singing, shouting, or playing brass or woodwind instruments, DOH strongly recommends using masks and/or bell covers, even when outdoors. • Indoor Performing Arts: 5
o You are not required to wear a mask while actively participating in performing arts activities indoors. However, you are required to wear a mask when you are not actively participating, for example, anytime you are not actively singing, playing your instrument, or performing, when talking to other participants or spectators, or when backstage or in other areas of the facility. o DOH strongly recommends that layered prevention measures be used among performing artists to limit risk for transmission of COVID-19. These could include requiring vaccination or screening testing of performers, increasing ventilation,, and distancing, as much as possible. In addition, DOH strongly recommends that performers wear masks or use bell covers to the degree possible indoors. o There may be different requirements for indoor performing arts if in a K-12 setting or if it is a K-12 sanctioned group or event. See DOH’s K-12 Schools 2021- 2022 Requirements. When do I have to wear a mask while practicing or playing sports? • Outdoor Sports: o You are not required to wear a mask for sporting activities that take place outdoors, regardless of vaccination status. Athletes who choose to wear masks should be supported in doing so. • Indoor Sports: o You are not required to wear a mask while actively participating in sporting activities indoors as a participant, coach, or official. However, you are required to wear a mask when you are not actively participating, for example, if you are a player on the sidelines or walking to the locker room. o DOH strongly recommends that prevention measures be used among those participating in moderate or high contact sports to reduce risk for transmission of COVID-19. These could include requiring vaccination or screening testing of athletes, increasing ventilation, and choosing to wear masks during training or competition. o You are not required to wear a mask in a swimming pool or while engaged in water sports. o There may be different requirements for indoor sports if in a K-12 setting or if it is a K-12 sanctioned event. See DOH’s K-12 Schools 2021-2022 Requirements. o See questions below on specific indoor sports and gym activities. If I am lifting weights, running on a treadmill, or attending a group fitness class like yoga or aerobics at a gym or fitness facility, do I need to wear a mask? • Yes, members of a gym are required to wear face coverings or masks when exercising indoors at a gym, yoga studio, or fitness facility whether as an individual, during personal training, or in a group class. There are limited exceptions for activities like swimming and indoor sports competitions or training. If I am playing an indoor sport such as racquetball, tennis or basketball at a gym or fitness facility, do I need to wear a face covering or mask? 6
• When actively playing or training for an indoor sport, an athlete is covered by the exception and does not need to wear a mask, even if at a gym, club, etc. However, when not actively competing or training, the athletes are required to wear masks, for example during team meetings, while on the bench/sidelines, before and after a game or match, and when doing other general fitness activities in the gym or facility. Our gym, club, business is open to members only and we verify vaccinations of all members. Do we have to wear a face coverings or masks? • Members, patrons, clients, customers of a gym, club are required to wear face coverings, even if fully vaccinated and even if the gym is not generally accessible to the public. This is because they are indoors where people from outside their household are present. In addition, all employees, regardless of employee vaccination status, must wear face coverings or masks following L&I requirements. Do I need to wear a mask if I work at or use a water recreation facility? • You are required to wear a mask when indoors at any water recreation facility, except when in the water or on the deck preparing to be in the water or while engaged in water sports or recreation. • You are not required to wear a mask at most outdoor water recreation facilities. o Long-term care facilities have unique requirements for masks in outdoor settings. Please see the DOH guidance for Outdoor Visits at Long-term Care Facilities. • Additional information on special considerations for sports and other activities at water recreation facilities can be found in DOH’s Sports and Fitness Guidance during COVID-19 document. • Employees must follow L&I requirements, regardless of setting or vaccination status. Youth and Youth Settings I work with unvaccinated children in a K-12 school, child care facility, or day camp. When do I have to wear a mask? • You are required to wear a mask indoors in these settings under the Secretary’s order. • DOH’s K-12 Schools 2021-2022 Requirements also have mask requirements that apply to workers in K-12 schools. • Employees must follow L&I requirements, regardless of setting or vaccination status. My child attends a K-12 school, child care facility, or day camp (including at community centers). When is my child required to wear a mask? • Regardless of your child’s vaccination status, your child is required to wear a mask while indoors if 5 years of age or older. If 2-4 years of age they are strongly encouraged to wear a mask indoors with adult supervision. • Your child is not required to wear a mask while outdoors. • See DOH’s guidance for K-12 Schools 2021-2022 Requirements and Child Care, Day Camps, and Youth Development for more information. 7
My child takes the school bus to school. Should they wear a mask? • Regardless of your child’s vaccination status, your child is required to wear a mask on public transportation, including school buses, if age 2 years or older per CDC public transportation order. My child plays music. Should they wear a mask while playing an instrument? • Regardless of your child’s vaccination status, masking is required of everyone in Performing Arts classes when not actively engaged in performing arts performances. For musicians who play woodwind or brass instruments, a bell cover with MERV-13 material, or surgical mask-equivalent, must be used at all times. See the K-12 Schools 2021-2022 Requirements for additional information. • Your child is not required to wear a mask for musical activities that take place outdoors, regardless of vaccination status. My child participates in a choir. Should they wear a mask while singing? • Regardless of your child’s vaccination status, masking is required of everyone in Performing Arts classes when not actively engaged in performing arts performances. See the K-12 Schools 2021-2022 Requirements for additional information. • Your child is not required to wear a mask for musical activities that take place outdoors, regardless of vaccination status. My child plays sports. When do they have to wear a mask? • Outdoor Sports: o Your child is not required to wear a mask for sporting activities that take place outdoors, regardless of vaccination status. • Indoor Sports: o Your child is not required to wear a mask while actively participating in most sport, however some sports may pose a high transmission risk and may require more protection. They are required to wear a mask when they are not actively training or competing. See the details outlined in DOH’s K-12 Schools 2021- 2022 Requirements and Sports and Fitness Guidance during COVID-19. o Your child may be subject testing or vaccination requirements instead of masking as is outlined in DOH’s K-12 Schools 2021-2022 Requirements. This will allow them to not wear a mask while actively training or competing. They are, however, required to wear a mask when not active, e.g., sitting on the bench or walking to and from the locker room. o They are not required to wear a mask in a swimming pool or while engaged in water sports or water recreation. I have children of different ages. Who needs to wear a mask? • Children younger than 2 should not wear a mask due to risk of suffocation. • Children aged 2-4, with the aid of a responsible adult, are required to wear masks on public transportation by federal order. In other settings children aged 2-4 are not 8
required to wear masks but are strongly encouraged to when in public places or when around people not from their household. • Children 5 years and older are required to wear masks just as adults are. • Children 12 years and older who are fully vaccinated should follow the same requirements as adults who are fully vaccinated. Follow the guidance in the General section above. Are face coverings or masks required at outdoor youth events? • At outdoor events, public or private, where there are 500 or more people present, masks are required. This applies to any type of outdoor event, including but not limited to outdoor youth sporting events (recreational, club, or K-12), festivals, celebrations or commemorations. o At these large outdoor events, masks are not required for the athletes or performers while they are actively engaged in the sport or activity. • If the outdoor event has less than 500 people, DOH strongly recommends that all people wear face coverings or masks, regardless of their vaccination status, if attending a crowded event. Health Care Providers and Health Care Settings I work in a health care setting. When do I have to wear a mask? When do I not have to wear masks? • You are required to wear a mask indoors in a health care setting under the Secretary’s order. If you are fully vaccinated, you are not required to wear a mask when working in non-public areas where only other employees are present or when working alone. • Consult with Labor & Industries (L&I) for questions about masking for employees in work settings. I’d like to visit or provide compassionate care for my family member or friend who lives in a long-term care facility, like a nursing home or assisted living facility. When do I have to wear a mask? • You are required to wear a mask indoors in these settings under the Secretary’s order. Congregate Settings I work in a congregate setting, like a homeless shelter, domestic violence shelter, or adult group home. When do I have to wear a mask? When do I not have to wear a mask? • You are required to wear a mask indoors in these settings under the Secretary’s order. If you are fully vaccinated, you are not required to wear a mask when working in non- public areas where only other employees are present or when working alone. • Employees must follow L&I requirements, regardless of setting or vaccination status. I’d like to visit my family member or friend who lives in a congregate setting, like an adult family home. When do I have to wear a mask? 9
• Generally, regardless of your vaccination status: o You are required to wear a mask while indoors. o You are not required to wear a mask while outdoors. • Adult family homes are allowed to create rules that are more protective than the Secretary of Health’s Health Order. See the “rules of the room” information above for more information. I work in an agricultural/seafood setting with temporary worker housing available. What requirements and recommendations apply to me and the business? • Please see the Guidance for Temporary Worker Housing for details for this congregate setting. I work at a fully vaccinated higher education campus, do I have to wear my mask while I lecture? • Similar to leading religious services, when actively lecturing you may remove your mask if you are speaking at a fully vaccinated campus and able to maintain physical distance from all observers, like in a large lecture hall, for example. Per the Secretary’s order, all others in attendance must be masked when indoors. DOH recommends lecturers consider all other alternatives before unmasking, e.g., using a microphone while remaining masked. General Work Settings I’m a business owner. Can I ask people to wear masks in my business? • People are required to wear masks indoors in your business, unless one of the exceptions described above applies. And you are prohibited from allowing anyone to be in your business location without a mask if they are required to wear one. Governor Inslee’s Updated COVID-19 Facial Covering Guidance for Employers, Businesses, and Organizations provides more information. • Consult with Labor & Industries (L&I) for questions about masking for employees in work settings. • Note: It is not a violation of HIPAA to ask an individual’s vaccination status. HIPAA applies to doctors’ offices, insurance companies and other HIPAA-covered entities. Most public employers who are not involved in the delivery of health care can ask for the vaccination status of employees. Please visit the HIPAA webpage for more information. Do employees have to wear a face covering or mask if they are working alone but are not vaccinated? • No, employees who are working alone indoors and have little or no expectation of in- person interruption do not have to wear a mask. This applies regardless of vaccination status. • Consult with Labor & Industries (L&I) for questions about masking for employees in work settings. 10
My business is generally not accessible to members of the public? Are my employees required to wear face coverings or masks now, even if they are fully vaccinated? • Your fully vaccinated employees who have been verified do not have to wear a mask if they are working in an area not accessible to the public and only employees are present. • Any staff who are not fully vaccinated must continue wearing masks, with the limited exceptions and exemptions noted in the Secretary’s order (e.g., working outside or working alone). My business is generally not accessible to members of the public, but we sometimes invite guests to onsite meetings or tours of our campus? Do these guests or my employees need to wear masks if we verify vaccinations of all in attendance? • When any guest, client, customer, patron, or member of the public visits for any reason, the guests must wear a face covering or mask regardless of vaccination status when indoors. In addition, all employees, regardless of the employee’s vaccination status, must wear face coverings or masks when members of the public or any non-employees are present in their specific indoor area or room (office, meeting room, manufacturing or warehouse floor, etc.) where they are working at the facility or campus during the public visit, tour, meeting, etc. • Your fully vaccinated employees who have been verified do not have to wear a mask if they are working in an area not accessible to the public and no non-employees (guests, clients, customers, patrons, etc.) are present in their work area (office, meeting room, manufacturing or warehouse floor, etc.). Any staff who are not fully vaccinated and verified must continue wearing masks in indoor settings, with the limited exceptions and exemptions noted in the Secretary’s order. My business is generally not accessible to members of the public, but is can part of a multi-employer worksite, do the employees have to wear a mask indoors even if they are all fully vaccinated? • Yes, at this time, face coverings are required for all employees where multiple employers are present at a workplace, regardless of vaccination status, and even if it has been pre-verified, with the limited exceptions and exemptions noted in the Secretary’s order. If my business, club, or event makes vaccination a condition of attendance for all employees and clients, customers, patrons, or members of the public who enter and we verify vaccination status of both employees and public, does anyone have to wear a mask? • Yes, at this time, if any clients, customers, guests or members of the public are present, face coverings are required for all employees and visitors regardless of vaccination status, and even if it has been pre-verified, with the limited exceptions and exemptions noted in the Secretary’s order. I’m an employee. I don’t feel safe without a mask. Can I wear a mask, even if it’s not required? 11
• Yes. You have the right to take extra precautions to wear non-required masks and/or PPE to protect yourself from the virus that causes COVID-19 in any setting, even if you have been fully vaccinated. • Consult with Labor & Industries (L&I) for questions about masking for employees in work settings. Enforcement and Business Rules What’s the penalty for not wearing a face covering? • We hope people will wear a face covering to protect the health of their friends and loved ones. However, willfully not wearing a mask when required by the Secretary’s order is a violation of the Governor’s proclamation 20-25, as amended. Violation of the Governor’s proclamation is a gross misdemeanor that may subject the violator to a fine of up to $5,000 and/or up to 364 days in county jail, per RCW 43.06.220(5) and RCW 9.92.20. Who will enforce the requirement to wear a face covering? • Local law enforcement agencies generally have primary enforcement jurisdiction in their localities. The order is not intended to penalize people – it’s intended to encourage each of us to wear a mask in public spaces and prevent the spread of COVID-19, and the highly infectious Delta variant. Everyone has a part to play when it comes to caring for our communities and protecting those who are unable to be vaccinated yet, like children under the age of 12. Can a business legally prevent me from entering if I am not wearing a face covering? • Yes. If a person is required to wear a face covering under the Secretary’s order, a business must require the person to wear a mask and prohibit entry if they decline. The governor’s proclamation states, “Customers: Businesses are prohibited from allowing customers to enter or remain in an indoor space in a business unless the customer is wearing a face covering, in accordance with the Secretary of Health’s face covering order. Businesses must post signage in a prominent location visible to customers at each entry informing customers of the face covering requirement.” Are businesses required to post signs requiring masks? • Yes. See the answer to the question above. What if a customer believes a business isn’t enforcing the mask order? • Businesses are required to adopt appropriate health and safety measures for staff and customers and require individuals to wear a face covering when in most public spaces. Customers who are concerned that a business is not adequately enforcing the face mask order can submit an anonymous complaint. The link to the complaint form is available on coronavirus.wa.gov. • Workplace violations may can be enforced by Labor & Industries (L&I), the Department of Licensing (DOL), the Washington Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB), the Department of 12
Health (DOH), and others depending on the type of employer involved. L&I can cite and fine employers who violate safety and health requirements. Additional Resources • DOH: Secretary of Health’s Health Order – June 29, 2021 • DOH: Cloth Face Coverings and Masks Guidance • Washington State Coronavirus Response: Coronavirus.wa.gov • L&I: COVID-19 Prevention in the Workplace—L&I Safety and Health Requirements and Guidance • CDC: When You’ve Been Fully Vaccinated • CDC: Prevent Getting Sick More COVID-19 Information and Resources Stay up-to-date on the current COVID-19 situation in Washington, Governor Inslee’s proclamations, symptoms, how it spreads, and how and when people should get tested. See our Frequently Asked Questions for more information. A person’s race/ethnicity or nationality does not, itself, put them at greater risk of COVID-19. However, data are revealing that communities of color are being disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. This is due to the effects of racism, and in particular, structural racism, that leaves some groups with fewer opportunities to protect themselves and their communities. Stigma will not help to fight the illness. Share only accurate information to keep rumors and misinformation from spreading. • WA State Department of Health 2019 Novel Coronavirus Outbreak (COVID-19) • WA State Coronavirus Response (COVID-19) • Find Your Local Health Department or District • CDC Coronavirus (COVID-19) • Stigma Reduction Resources Have more questions? Call our COVID-19 Information hotline: 1-800-525-0127 Monday – 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., Tuesday – Sunday and observed state holidays, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. For interpretative services, press # when they answer and say your language. For questions about your own health, COVID-19 testing, or testing results, please contact a health care provider. To request this document in another format, call 1-800-525-0127. Deaf or hard of hearing customers, please call 711 (Washington Relay) or email civil.rights@doh.wa.gov. 13
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