Johnson County lifts face covering requirement in county buildings

IOWA CITY — Johnson County, in line with new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is removing its face covering policy in county buildings.

The Board of Supervisors unanimously voted Thursday morning to rescind the requirement, effective immediately.

The county has had some form of face covering requirement since summer 2020, according to the county. County employees and visitors have been required to wear a face covering in county buildings since spring 2021.

The CDC last week announced new metrics to gauge a community’s level of COVID-19 risk and recommendations for appropriate precautions based on a community’s risk levels. A county-level map of community transmission and more county-specific information can be found at CDC.gov.

The CDC now lists Johnson County as having “medium” community transmission where indoor mask wearing is advised for those considered to be at a high risk for severe illness.

Counties with “high” transmission are still recommended to wear a mask indoors in public. A total of 14 counties in Iowa have “high” transmission, according to the CDC map on Thursday morning.

Following the new CDC guidance, Iowa City, Coralville and North Liberty lifted their respective mask mandates. Cedar Rapids and Linn County have also both ended their mask requirements, although masks still are required at the Linn County Public Health building.

The five supervisors during the board’s Wednesday work session discussed the decision to rescind the face covering policy, as well as the need to be flexible if there is another surge in cases.

“We don't know what's coming next, and we may find that we are truly in some kind of yo-yo thing where variants come so quickly that you're in high (transmission) and then you're not,” Supervisor Rod Sullivan said.

Johnson County Public Health is “cautiously optimistic” but also “incredibly pragmatic,” said Danielle Pettit-Majewski, the department’s director.

“We may see a reduction as we get into warmer weather and then we may see, again, another cycle in the fall. I hope not,” Pettit-Majewski said.

Pettit-Majewski added how it’s important for the board to know that a different decision might have to be made in the coming months if the situation changes.

Supervisor Pat Heiden said the board has been flexible and listened to the guidance from Johnson County Public Health and the County Attorney’s Office over the last two years of the pandemic.

“I have full confidence that when we need to, if we need to … we'll do just that again under your guidance,” Heiden said.

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