New guidelines released by Sonoma County Health Officer Dr. Sundari Mase allow certain groups to go mask-free indoors.

A press release from October 21 states that the new orders will “allow certain stable groups of people, such as those in gyms, classes, and offices, the option of lifting the mandate on wearing masks indoors if they verify that all members of the group are fully vaccinated for COVID-19.”

Notably, the same announcement clarified that “it does not allow proof of a negative test as a substitute for proof of vaccination.” 

Despite this order, Mase stated, “We must continue to wear our masks in most indoor settings in order to limit the spread of the virus during the coming winter months.”

This announcement goes hand in hand with an October 7 announcement of clear guidelines for lifting mask requirements, which include 80 percent of the total population being vaccinated. 

College classes are highlighted as an example of a group that could feasibly be maskless and on paper, they are a prime example of potential “indoor gatherings of 100 or fewer people” with verified COVID-19 vaccinations. But is this likely to affect Sonoma State classes?

But with Sonoma State being part of the Cal State system and under the same jurisdiction, it’s unlikely, even if masklessness becomes more widespread across Sonoma County, that we’ll see it adopted in the near future. 

The other question is how new information released by the CDC on Wednesday will affect the October 21 decision. The latest CDC COVID-19 transmission maps show that all of the Bay Area has backslid into at least substantial transmission, with Sonoma County in particular at high transmission. 

But according to Dr. Monica Gandhi, a UCSF infectious disease expert, these results show that Sonoma County is actually where it needs to be. 

“Highly vaccinated regions are always going to look like they are in the red,” says Gandhi. “This is an artifact of how we define community transmission.”

Gandhi also says that while these transmission numbers look scary it “actually just shows the right people are [getting tested].”

But just looking at transmission rates may be enough to scare some people, or even the county, off from lifting the mask mandate in certain spaces. 

Sonoma County cases are peaking again; going from a seven-day average of 24 new cases when the new guidelines were released to a seven-day average of 72 new cases. This is especially concerning with the upcoming winter, which, judging from last year, is bound to cause a serious increase of cases. 

As we inch ever closer to a second full year of this pandemic, the masking and vaccine situation feels more and more frustrating. Those of us who are masking correctly and getting vaccinated are doing everything “right,” but at this point it feels like there’s nothing more we can do. It’s the people who are holding out from doing the bare minimum that stop society from returning to normal. 

But what if masks are the new normal? Even if the seemingly never-ending pandemic somehow does draw to a close, will we be anxiously waiting for the virus to strike again?

This pandemic has created an entire world of traumatized people. Even those who won’t be able to remember the pandemic will still feel its effects. And yet, those who publicly voice their distaste for this situation are the ones doing the least about it. For now, all we can do is hope we reach that bare minimum, that 80 percent, that will at least lead us in the right direction back to normal.