Middletown Re-Institutes Mask Mandate In City Buildings

Middletown CT

02 August, 2021

4:21 PM

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MIDDLETOWN, CT — With Middlesex County being designated as an area with "substantial" risk for the spread of COVID-19, Middletown Mayor Ben Florsheim announced Monday that the city is re-instituting the requirement that masks be worn in all city buildings regardless of vaccination status. Florsheim said the requirement is effective immediately. Middlesex County's designation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was changed from "moderate" to a "substantial" risk area over the weekend. Florsheim noted that Middlesex County still has the highest vaccination rate in Connecticut, and one of the highest in the nation. "Masks will be made available to any members of the public entering city buildings who do not have their own on hand," Florsheim wrote in a post on Facebook. "We are also officially recommending that masks be worn in all indoor public spaces, which is also in accordance with CDC and DPH guidance. "The Delta variant is incredibly contagious. If you have been in contact with someone who has tested positive, or have any upper respiratory symptoms, I strongly encourage you to get tested for COVID-19, even if you are fully vaccinated. "The good news amidst the bad is the fact that 'breakthrough cases' of vaccinated people getting infected with COVID-19 are still rare, and serious cases among the vaccinated are exceedingly, vanishingly rare (0.004% of breakthrough cases result in hospitalization, and less than 0.001% of cases have been fatal). Despite the unfortunate return of an uptick in infections in our area, the vaccine is and remains an invaluable tool—the best one we have—to keep people safe even if they do get sick. The city will continue to offer vaccination clinics at Cross Street AME Zion Church every Wednesday and will also begin offering regular clinics at City Hall for members of the public to get vaccinated. Dates and times for those clinics will be announced shortly, and all current vaccination clinic locations can be found on the city's website under the COVID-19 Resources tab. "I hope that you will join me in encouraging your friends and family who are eligible for vaccination but haven't gotten it yet to do so. I am not excited to go back to wearing a mask and I know no one reading this is either, but the quicker we get every eligible person fully vaccinated, the better our chances are of being able to stop the ongoing spread of the Delta variant and get rid of the masks for good."