To curb the spread of the Omicron variant of COVID-19, city officials have reinstated the indoor mask mandate for all public spaces, which goes into effect Thursday, January 12, at 6 a.m. The order applies to all indoor live music venues, bars, breweries and restaurants.
As of December 30, 2021, more than 80 percent of all adults in Orleans Parish have been vaccinated with the COVID-19 vaccine. However, only 64.6 percent of all New Orleanians and just 34.2 percent of the 5-to-17-year-old population has been fully vaccinated. Studies reveal that in some areas of the city, vaccination rates fall below 50 percent. The highly contagious Omicron variant of the coronavirus has resulted in large increases in cases and hospitalizations in a short period of time.
Average daily new cases in the city top 1,200 and hospitals are overburdened with an influx of patients combined with many medical personnel on sick leave or in quarantine. Emergency rooms report waits of up to 12 hours.
“I don’t think people realize what hospitals look like right now,” said city health director Dr. Jennifer Avegno at a press conference today. “It’s dramatically different from a mild inconvenience because of staff shortages.”
The mask mandate is likely to extend beyond Carnival season, which will culminate on Mardi Gras, Tuesday, March 1. Millions of tourists are annually drawn to the city for the lavish parades, public costuming, formal balls and extensive bookings at live-music venues.
To illustrate the dramatic spike in infections, the Louisiana Department of Health noted that on December 11, 2021, hospitalizations statewide for COVID infections stood at 207 beds. That figure jumped to 1,905 by January 11. Hospitals in metro New Orleans account for 456 of those patients. Avegno said that infection rate is three times higher than the city’s previous high, which occurred in April 2020, following a surge likely created by mass gatherings at Mardi Gras.
“Even if our cases begin to decline in the next week or two—and I believe that is likely—hospitalizations and deaths will lag, likely for at least the next month, and that’s right up to the time that individuals from areas with lower vaccination rates and later omicron surges will be at our doorstep,” Avegno said.
The New Orleans Health Department will also be distributing N95 masks free of charge. Distribution is scheduled to take place at the following locations Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Friday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. while supplies last:
• Main Library, 219 Loyola Ave.
• Algiers Regional Library, 3014 Holiday Drive
• East New Orleans Regional Library, 5641 Read Blvd.
• Milton H. Latter Memorial Library, 5120 St. Charles Ave.
• Robert E. Smith Library, 6301 Canal Blvd.
• Norman Mayer Library, 3001 Gentilly Blvd.
• Hubbell Library, 725 Pelican Ave.
In addition to masks, individuals five years of age and older must provide proof of at least one dose of an approved COVID vaccine or negative antigen or PCR COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours before entry in any public venue.
For more information on masking requirements in New Orleans, visit here.
