The Mask Strikes Back, Will Mask Mandates Return to Bozeman?

The year 2020 will always be known as the year of the Mask.  Luckily, those days are long gone and you no longer have to wear a mask if....oh wait, BREAKING NEWS, maybe we spoke too soon.

On Tuesday, July 27th, the Federal Government updated its mask recommendations.

According to the latest information from the CDC website, fully vaccinated individuals are encouraged to wear masks indoors in areas of substantial or high transmission. All of these changes are based on the current spread of the Delta variant.

So, what does that mean for Bozeman and the state of Montana?

According to the latest information, right around one-third of the counties in the state of Montana are now being considered areas of substantial or high transmission. So what does it take to meet the substantial transmission threshold? The CDC says that a positivity rate between 8 percent and 10 percent in the last week qualifies.

The good news for us, as of now, Gallatin County is not among those that are seeing substantial or high transmission, but counties such as Missoula, Yellowstone, Flathead, Lincoln, Jefferson, Mineral, Cascade, Teton, and Toole are just some that are.

If this isn't bad enough, the CDC is now saying even if you've been vaccinated fully you can still become infected and spread the Delta variant.

Living here in Bozeman, I rarely see anyone wearing a mask, indoors our outdoors. Will that change?  Are masks going to be a part of our future?  All we can do is stay tuned, if this virus has taught us anything, it's that things change, and they change often.