Nearly 9 in 10 Californians now live in counties with a high COVID-19 community level, in which the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends universal masking in indoor public spaces.The new developments underscore the increasing concerns about super-infectious subvariants of Omicron that have fueled a summer coronavirus wave.With the coronavirus resurgent and cases and hospitalizations on the rise, Los Angeles is poised to become the first Southern California county to reinstate mandatory public indoor masking. L.A. County officially entered the high community level Thursday. Should it remain there for the next two weeks, the county will reissue an indoor mask mandate with an effective date of July 29.AdvertisementNo other California county has publicly tied its placement on the CDC’s community level scale to a renewal of masking orders. Along with L.A., 41 other counties are in the high level as of this week.Most places recommend, but do not require, masking indoors while in public.Besides Los Angeles County, the other counties that on Thursday entered the high COVID-19 community level category for the first time since mid-March are San Diego, Orange, Santa Barbara, Imperial and Tehama.A total of 42 of California’s 58 counties are now in the high COVID-19 community level, in which 87% of California’s residents live. Just a week earlier, 41% of Californians lived in the 34 counties with a high COVID-19 community level. Ventura County was the first Southern California county to enter the high COVID-19 community level, which it did on June 30. With case rates high, counties are generally entering the high COVID-19 community level when hosp …
