On February 15 the Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services posted new safety guidelines for events regarding the pandemic, which removes the outdoor mask mandate for events.
According to the press release the new threshold for attendance is 1,000 people for indoor mega events and 10,000 for outdoor mega events which is in line with the California Department of Health updated Mega Events Guidance.
The largest change to the guidelines comes in the form of removing the mask mandate for outdoor events.
Despite the removal of the mandate, masking is still encouraged where physical distancing isn’t possible.
Another section of Tuesday’s update is for youth sporting events as well, some of which are held just across the street from Long Beach City College at Heartwell Park.
The new guidance fits with the outdoor mega events and their removal of a mask mandate. However, indoor events require masking regardless of vaccination status.
Several calls were made to try and reach the Public Affairs Officer at the Department of Health and Human Services for a comment on the new protocol, however these calls were not returned.
What do students here at LBCC think of this? David Reid, had this to say on the matter.
“Feels kinda weird that there’s no mask mandate on large outdoor events. It seems a little rushed.”
This response shows a favor for masks but two students is not indicative of the entire student population, especially in such a rapidly evolving situation.