CDC issues new mask guidance as COVID persists. What do Idaho health districts think?

Public health agencies in Southwest Idaho took differing positions on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s new COVID-19 mask guidelines Tuesday.

Central District Health, which oversees Ada, Boise, Elmore and Valley counties, issued a statement supporting the new recommendations to wear masks in indoor public spaces, whether you are vaccinated or not. Southwest District Health, which oversees Adams, Canyon, Gem, Owyhee, Payette and Washington counties, stopped short of that.

The new CDC guidance, announced Tuesday afternoon, said people who live in areas of the U.S. with “substantial and high” transmission should again don face coverings — something that applies to most of Idaho’s counties.

“Wearing a mask, along with physical distancing, and choosing to get vaccinated for COVID-19 continue to be our best defense in this pandemic,” the statement from Central District Health read. “Getting vaccinated prevents severe illness, hospitalization and death while helping reduce the spread of the virus in the community. With the delta variant present in Idaho counties, choosing to get vaccinated is the best way to protect yourself, your loved ones, and those around you.”

Valley County is experiencing “high” transmission of COVID-19, while Ada, Boise and Elmore counties each have “substantial” transmission, according to the CDC and CDH.

Also echoing new CDC guidelines regarding K-12 education as school starts later this summer, CDH is urging masks for teachers and students.

“Universal indoor masking is recommended for all teachers, staff, students and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccine status or community transmission,” according to the Central District Health statement. “Further, CDH encourages people to follow any policies or requirements set by their workplace or any place of business they visit.”

In an emailed statement, Katrina Williams, a spokesperson for Southwest District Health, said the agency is available to communicate “the steps individuals can take to lessen their risk for exposure and illness so members of our community can make informed decisions about their health.”

According to the CDC, Canyon and Gem counties have “substantial” spread of COVID-19 over the past seven days.

“Any variants of the COVID-19 virus have the potential for spread in an environment where people are gathered near one another, where vaccination rates are low, and few, if any, prevention measures are in place,” Williams added. “The residents of our six-county region are best suited to make responsible decisions concerning their health and safety as it relates to COVID-19.”

At its next health meeting, on Aug. 24, the board “does not intend to discuss masks,” Williams said.

Idaho has seen its caseload rise over the past two weeks, with the seven-day moving average of cases exceeding 200 again for the first time in months. The state added 318 cases on Tuesday, with 85 in Ada County and 42 in Canyon.

Doctor supports CDC guidance, warns of Idaho resistance

Ted Epperly, the CEO of the Family Medicine Residency of Idaho, a large teaching health center, told the Idaho Statesman by phone that he fully supports the CDC’s new decision, which he said is necessary to help stem the spread of the highly contagious delta variant.

“This is a warning shot across the bow,” Epperly said. “We need to pay attention to this.”

He said that Idaho’s low vaccination rates and the spread of delta mean that residents need to take more precautions — and get vaccinated.

“People’s concern needs to be elevated about (COVID-19) so they become part of the solution and not part of the problem,” he said. He said the CDC’s previous decision to mostly drop its mask recommendations for vaccinated Americans in May was “premature.”

“We’ve got to get the infection rate down to decrease future variants from developing,” Epperly said, “or we’re going to have this continued reverberation and echo effect of the virus getting into more and more people, and more and more variants happening.”

If the state’s vaccination numbers don’t improve — Idaho still hasn’t reached 50% for ages 12 and up — Epperly said he expects the current surge to continue this fall and into the winter.

“I wish that this wasn’t going to happen, but I’m afraid it absolutely will,” he said.

Last month, the Ada County Board of Commissioners removed Epperly from CDH’s health board, with one commissioner citing his distaste for the mask mandate and other public health measures instituted at the start of the pandemic.

“We were a little too cavalier with this pandemic restricting freedoms,” Republican Commissioner Ryan Davidson, of District 1, told the Statesman last month. “Dr. Epperly was the main voice on the committee, and now that his term is over, we decided not to reappoint.”

County commissioners will select a new physician to replace Epperly in August.

A spokesperson for CDH, Christine Myron, said Tuesday that its statement in support of CDC guidelines came from the district’s staff, rather than its seven-member board. Myron said the agenda for the board’s next meeting, on Aug. 20, is still being finalized.

“No word yet on whether this guidance will become a specific agenda item, but the board will get updates on COVID vaccine activity and efforts, and general COVID activity in our jurisdiction,” Myron said.

Epperly, who served with the district for 15 years, said he thinks the health board will resist the new CDC guidance.

“I’m sad to think that that could be an outcome, but it may well be,” he said.