MASK NO MORE

With June 15 rapidly approaching, questions still remain: what exactly is going to happen? Will things go “back to normal”?

June 15 is the day that the California government has designated for moving beyond the “Blueprint for a Safer Economy” and returning to pre-pandemic business operations. 

For the vast majority of businesses and industries, it’s a return to normal. 

For others, some guidance will remain in place. 

The most notable of these is for events.

Vaccine verification or proof of negative test will be required for attendees at indoor events exceeding 5,000 people and outdoor events exceeding 10,000 people. 

These “Mega Events” are still considered high risk for Covid-19 transmission due to close physical proximity of attendees, people travelling from out-of-state, and the difficulty of contact tracing. 

In addition, the state will require employers to adhere to Cal/OSHA Covid-19 standards (i.e employees wearing masks and maintaining social distance). 

Visitors to businesses will not be required to wear face coverings inside. 

At a meeting of Mammoth Lakes Events organizers, Town Public Information Officer Stu Brown explained the changes. 

Brown said that for events not classified as mega, guidance around masking and distance is strongly recommended but not required. 

Said Brown of local events, “I don’t think we’re going to hit the numbers…I don’t think there’s any events in Mammoth that are going to hit these numbers.”

The largest event that came to mind for attendees, Bluesapalooza, clocks in at 6,000-7,000 attendees spread over four days. 

Mono County Health Director Bryan Wheeler said that the county is developing a micro clinic Covid-19 vaccine program. 

In essence, the county would send people to a specific business in order to vaccinate those employees. Another version has the county setting up in a public place (i.e. Shady Rest Park) and giving vaccines to any passerby who wants one. 

Laurey Peterson, director of Catering and Events at Mammoth Mountain, said she’d been “booking weddings like crazy.”

“Everyone wants to come together, everyone wants to come inside,” Peterson said. 

Some groups have even said that they will cancel, postpone or move their events if mask mandates are enforced. 

Event organizers generally said that they would offer masks and provide handwashing stations at their events but added that they had no intention of enforcing masking.