Oregon implementing mask mandates outdoors regardless of vaccination status

Oregon announced Tuesday it is reimplementing an outdoor mask mandate regardless of vaccination status, a measure that is slated to take effect starting Friday.

“Effective Friday, August 27, masks will be required in most public outdoor settings, including large outdoor events, where physical distancing is not possible, and regardless of vaccination status,” a press release from the governor’s office stated.

Gov. Kate Brown (D) said in a video the action is to “protect Oregonians and save lives.”

The move is likely to be highly controversial. The state’s directive goes beyond the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines, that suggest fully vaccinated individuals wear a mask indoors in areas with high transmission rates.

Oregon is the first state to reimplement an outdoor mask mandate — all states dropped theirs after the CDC guidelines allowed them to do so.