New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Friday a mask mandate for all indoor public places unless venues or businesses implement a COVID-19 vaccine requirement.
Hochul, who made the announcement in New York City, said her decision was due to the state’s weekly seven-day case rate, an uptick in hospitalizations, insufficient vaccination rates in certain areas, and the anticipation of large groups shopping and gathering during the holiday season.
The Democrat governor said the mask mandate, which will be effective Monday, would be "temporary" and reassessed Jan. 15.
"I have to protect people but also the economy," Hochul said during a press conference at the Lincoln Square Neighborhood Center. "I want to make sure that those businesses that were hurt so hard in the pandemic and were shut down and resulted in their loss of income, [and] the loss of income of all people who work for them ... we have to prevent that from happening."
The governor's office issued a press release saying the mask mandate was in alignment with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's recommendations for communities with substantial and high transmission.
Since Thanksgiving, the statewide seven-day average case rate had increased by 43% and hospitalizations had increased by 29%.
"We shouldn't have reached the point where we are confronted with a winter surge, especially with the vaccine at our disposal, and I share many New Yorkers' frustration that we are not past this pandemic yet," Hochul said in the release.
"I want to thank the more than 80% of New Yorkers who have done the right thing to get fully vaccinated. If others will follow suit, these measures will no longer be necessary."
A violation of Hochul's measure will be subject to all civil and criminal penalties, including a maximum fine of $1,000 for each violation. Local health departments are being asked to enforce these requirements.
"We’re not out of the woods. I do see the clearing in the distance," Hochul said Friday. "[If we] get more people vaccinated, people back to jobs, and get people back to a sense of normalcy, the stresses on every day human life starts to lift."
The Biden administration last week announced it will require travelers to wear masks on airplanes, trains, and buses, and at airports and train stations through March 18.