Mask mandate will remain at least till Oct. 27

The mask mandate imposed by Gov. John Bel Edwards last month will remain in place at least through Oct. 27, Edwards announced Tuesday.
He said the COVID-19 statistics for the fourth wave of coronavirus infections are improving, but the entire state remains in the highest of four CDC risk categories for community COVID spread.
On Tuesday, the Louisiana Office of Public Health reported a pandemic total of 8,354 COVID-19 cases in St. Mary, up by only 49 since Friday.
The St. Mary COVID-19 death toll stands at 209. One death was reported Tuesday, the first fatality since Thursday.
Through August and into September, the parish averaged more than one COVID-related death per day.
The fourth spike in COVID cases that began in early July has claimed 62 St. Mary lives.
Statewide, the OPH reported 1,031 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday along with 54 deaths.
The number of COVID-positive people in Louisiana hospitals was at 989 Tuesday, down by more than two-thirds from the peak of over 3,000 in August.
The burden on hospitals from the new COVID wave, just as Louisiana schools were ready to reopen, led Edwards to call for the mask mandate for people in indoor public spaces, including K-12 schools and colleges and universities.
The fourth wave of infections has been blamed by public health officials on the highly contagious and potent Delta variant of COVID-19.
First confirmed in Louisiana in early July, the Delta variant quickly became the dominant form of the disease. Public health officials eventually warned that Delta is so contagious that people face a choice between vaccination and infection.
St. Mary Parish’s vaccination rate has climbed from about 29% to 37.95% since July, according to the OPH dashboard as of Tuesday morning. Louisiana’s vaccination rate is at 45%.
The OPH says 86% of new cases, 85% of hospitalizations and 81% deaths from COVID-19 in Louisiana are among those who are not fully vaccinated.
The question of booster shots has also become controversial recently.
Currently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance says the effectiveness of vaccines has been shown to decrease over time.
Currently, people who have received the Pfizer vaccine and are 65 or over and people 18 and over who have health conditions that make them vulnerable to COVID, or who live or work in high-risk environments are eligible for a Pfizer booster shot.
Public Health Officer Dr. Joe Kanter said the effect of the fourth COVID wave on children and pregnant women has been “depressing.”
Since July, COVID has been linked to 14 problem pregnancies. Those cases resulted in the deaths of six mothers, all unvaccinated, and 10 fetal deaths.
Seven children have died of COVID-related causes in the fourth wave, nearly as many as in the first 15 months of the pandemic, Kanter said.