Mask Mandates Are Back In California, And More Might Be Coming

For those who live in sane parts of the country or the rest of the world, it might be hard to believe that there are still debates over continuing mask mandates.

But California authorities do not adhere to the rules of a sane society.

And as a result, mask mandates are making their triumphant return in parts of the state, at least in specific settings. It’s an indefensible betrayal of the scientific method, a victory for “experts” who deliberately mislead and misinformed the public since 2020, and a reminder that despite the overwhelming evidence that masks don’t work, there is a committed group of ideological extremists who are more than willing to enforce their authoritarian demands onto a disturbingly complying public.

Just a few days ago, the health officer of Sonoma County in Northern California issued an order forcing health care workers to wear masks in areas where they’ll be treating patients. Kaiser hospitals in the state also reinstated mask mandates several weeks ago, although they did limit their order to employees after significant backlash.

The worst aspect of the Sonoma County order, and that’s a high bar to clear, is that there’s literally no substantial increase of COVID transmission or concerning surge of hospitalizations or deaths to justify this decision. And they don’t even attempt to claim that there’s a surge worth worrying about.

Dr. Karen (you can’t make this up) Smith is going to force healthcare workers in Sonoma to mask from November 2023 all the way through until April 2024. Not because of any actual data, but because she presumes wrongly that masks will have any effect.

Misinformation Contributes To Endless Masking

"The widespread availability of COVID-19 testing and treatment, the high level of community vaccination in the County, and the lower death rate seen in the most recent surges of COVID-19, have diminished the necessity for year-round mandatory orders related to masking in multiple high-risk settings. However, the risk to vulnerable patients of COVID-19, influenza, and other respiratory viruses in Health Care Settings, including skilled nursing facilities, remains significant," the order reads.

In justifying her flagrant overreach, Smith issued a statement earlier in the week with a nonsensical, science-defying word salad about the risks of COVID several months into 2024.

"Patients and residents in our health care and congregate facilities, especially young children, pregnant women, the elderly, and those with chronic health conditions, are at greater risk for respiratory virus-related hospitalizations and death. Workers in direct care, health care, and congregate facilities are at risk for respiratory illness and can transmit the viruses to their clients, patients, and coworkers."

This statement betrays a horrifying lack of awareness, misinterpretation, and unwittingly reveals how COVID extremists intend to continue their ineffective policies instead of admitting their much documented mistakes.

The most obvious misdirection in the order is the disproven assumption that masks make any difference in reducing “respiratory virus-related hospitalization and death.” As anyone with even a cursory knowledge of the pandemic now knows, there is no high quality data or evidence that masks are effective in preventing transmission, infection, or death.

As repeatedly shown, there’s plenty of evidence confirming the exact opposite. So much so that even Dr. Anthony Fauci, a fanatical disciple of pseudoscience, recently admitted as much.

READ: FAUCI FINALLY ADMITS MASK MANDATES DON’T WORK, SAYS ’10 PERCENT’ EFFECTIVE IN NEW YORK TIMES PIECE

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 11: Dr. Anthony Fauci, White House Chief Medical Advisor and Director of the NIAID. (Photo by Greg Nash-Pool/Getty Images)

What may even be worse than the anti-science reality denial inherent in continuing to force masking, even in limited circumstances, is that Sonoma County, like most of California, is a poster child for how ineffective masks are in reducing the severe outcomes that Smith mentions.

Sonoma County Is An Excellent Example Of Public Health Fuility

Based on California’s own data tracker, confirmed COVID hospitalizations in Sonoma County were highest while a mask mandate was in effect.

So in order to reduce hospitalizations in Sonoma County, the health officer is reinstating a policy that…already failed to reduce hospitalizations in Sonoma County.

Sounds about right.

It’s a similar story with COVID-associated deaths.

As a relatively wealthy, healthy region, COVID was never a significant threat to Sonoma County, regardless of time period.

But whatever marginal risk existed has essentially evaporated in 2023. Over the past three months, there have been 11 reported COVID deaths in Sonoma County.

And that includes those who tested positive for COVID, even if the actual cause of death was unrelated.

Yet healthcare workers throughout the county are subjected to a mask mandate for most of the next six months because of the continual delusions of a county health officer unwilling to accept reality.

Contradictory Information From Supposed ‘Experts’

Another confusing aspect of this decision is that these same health officials are the most devoted to promoting universal vaccination and endless booster doses.

Elderly patients, or hospitalized individuals at higher risk of severe illness have now had the opportunity to get vaccinated for nearly three years. They’ve had the opportunity to get not one, not two, but three booster doses, with yet another that was authorized this month, despite the total lack of clinical data supporting it.

Yet here they are, returning to masks into 2024. How can this be remotely justifiable if they’re so intent on getting everyone vaccinated?

Even if masks reduced the risk of serious illness or death, which they conclusively do not, there would be no need to reduce risk of those at highest risk are already vaccinated.

Then again, maybe she’s seen the latest data from the CDC on vaccine efficacy.

If the argument is that not everyone is vaccinated and received four boosters after the rapid decline of efficacy, that’s a personal decision that’s up to each individual.

The permanent religion of safetyism that was unleashed by COVID extremism has as its goal permanent forced masking policies in a desperate attempt to reduce all risk inherent in life to near zero - by enacting policies that will never help accomplish their goals.

Demand For Masks Continues

Even worse, many in California are now demanding that other institutions reinstate mask mandates. They’ve all embraced the same misinformation that requires people to indefinitely accommodate their dogmatic zealotry for disproven interventions.

A disabled students group at UCLA issued a resolution demanding that the university reinstate mask requirements for indoor and “crowded outdoor spaces,” weekly testing requirements, booster requirements and bringing back the COVID task force.

For years, some of us have repeatedly asked how this madness will ever end.

The answer, as we see in California, is that it won’t. In fact, new survey results have revealed that 76% of Democrats would support a mask mandate. In September 2023.

Some parts of the world will chose to permanently move on from this, putting the mistakes of the pandemic behind them while still refusing to be held accountable for their mistakes. Others will continue the theatricality of a permanent COVID safety regime forever.

Abandoning all pretense of evidence-based thinking has consequences. And we’re unfortunately seeing this play out again now..