Face coverings or masks will be required statewide after Gov. Jared Polis issued an executive order, which goes into effect at midnight.
In a news conference Thursday, Polis announced the mandate, which requires masks for everyone over the age of 10 while inside buildings open to the public. The mandate doesn’t change anything for Summit County, which already requires masks whenever people are in a public building and outside when a 6-foot distance from others isn’t possible.
According to Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment survey results presented at the conference, counties in Colorado with no mask order have seen 49% of their population wearing masks and 80% maintaining a 6-foot distance from others. Counties with some sort of mask order have seen 57% wearing masks and 83% maintaining a 6-foot distance.
I want to make sure mask-wearing ordinances don’t make people think everything is safe, and they can forget about social distancing,” Polis said. “Mask-wearing complements social distancing.”
Polis also said areas of Colorado with mask ordinances have had a slower spread of the virus.
“We have a choice in Colorado: either more mask-wearing and more attention to social distancing, or more damage to our economy and loss of life,” he said.
