For Millions of Americans, New Normal Now Means a Face Mask

The death toll from the coronavirus pandemic in the United States surged past 30,000 on Wednesday as governors began cautiously preparing Americans for a post-virus life that would likely include public face coverings as the "new normal."

The governors of Connecticut, Maryland, New York and Pennsylvania each issued orders or recommendations of varying severity that residents wear face masks as they emerge from isolation in the coming weeks. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention previously recommended masks as a way to slow the virus' spread.

"If you are going to be in public and you cannot maintain social distancing, then have a mask, and put that mask on," New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in announcing an order requiring face coverings when people cannot maintain 6 feet of distance from others.

Similar orders were imposed in New Jersey and Los Angeles last week, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom has suggested residents across the nation's most populous state would likely be wearing masks in public for some time to come.

"We are going to be getting back to normal; it will be a new normal," Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont said, echoing a phrase used by at least two of his fellow governors in recent days.

More than 30,800 people have died of COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by coronavirus, in the United States as of Wednesday afternoon, according to a Reuters tally. Deaths rose by 2,371 in the previous day, setting a record for the second day in a row.

That total includes more than 4,000 deaths newly attributed to the disease in New York City, the center of the pandemic, after health officials revised their counting methods to include "probable," but untested, cases.

As the outbreak begins to slow, political leaders have bickered over how and when to begin the process of unwinding unprecedented lockdowns that have badly damaged the economy and largely confined most Americans to their homes.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said on Wednesday large gatherings like concerts and sporting events were not likely to be allowed in the city until 2021.