Mecklenburg mask mandate could end soon as the county’s COVID levels improve

Mecklenburg County could be nearing the end of its latest mask mandate, as the county’s average COVID-19 test positivity rate nears the 5% threshold.

Last week, the county’s Board of Commissioners voted to change the standard keeping the COVID-19 mask mandate in place — allowing masking in public places to stop if the daily COVID-19 positivity rate remains below 5% for seven days.

The county’s average positivity rate for the past week was 5.5%, nearing the threshold for the first time since July. And on four separate days over the last two months, the county has recorded a daily positivity rate lower than 5%.

And the county’s other COVID-19 trends have continued to improve too.

According to Mecklenburg data released Friday, confirmed COVID-19 infections have decreased over the past two weeks, as has the average number of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in Mecklenburg County.

Some 144 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 in Mecklenburg County facilities as of Wednesday, the most recent day reported. That’s the lowest single day of hospitalizations in Mecklenburg County since July 25.

At the height of Mecklenburg’s fall peak, 458 people were hospitalized on a single day in August.

The improvement in coronavirus trends comes as the country expands access to COVID-19 vaccines, widely distributing the shots to children ages 5 through 11 for the first time. Last week, federal organizations approved the use of the Pfizer COVID-19 pediatric vaccine for use in that age group.

County changes data releases

For much of the pandemic, the county has released weekly reports on Mecklenburg’s coronavirus levels. That’s changing now.

As of Friday’s latest data release, the county health department is switching to a monthly data release. The next update on the county’s COVID-19 trends from Mecklenburg County Public Health will be released Dec. 3.

The state also releases data on county and statewide coronavirus levels, updated online Monday through Friday.

This story was originally published November 8, 2021 at 9:36 AM.

Hannah Smoot

The Charlotte Observer

704-358-5349

Hannah Smoot covers business in Charlotte, focusing on health care and transportation. She has been covering COVID-19 in North Carolina since March 2020. She previously covered money and power at The Rock Hill Herald in South Carolina and is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.