Rising COVID-19 case rates in Apache and Navajo counties have prompted the Arizona Department of Health Services to recommend wearing masks in those counties. Both are now labeled with the “high COVID community level” designation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in which it also recommends mask wearing indoors.
And while some of Arizona’s other counties, including Maricopa and Pima, are under the “medium community level” label, Steve Elliott with the state Department of Health Services says masks may be appropriate regardless of case rates.
“We recommend assessing your own risk and also the risk of the people around you," Elliott said. "Someone who’s older or immunocompromised who’s around you, even if you’re in a county at that ‘low’ community level, they’re at higher risk for COVID-19. So you may want to wear a mask.”
Under the “medium” distinction, the CDC suggests those who are at risk of severe illness talk to their health care provider about mask wearing and other precautions.
