Evanston Township High School reinstates indoor mask mandate after suburb’s COVID transmission level raised to high

EVANSTON, Ill. (WLS) — Evanston Township High School has reinstated its indoor mask mandate for all students and staff after public health officials raised the suburb’s COVID transmission risk to “high.”

The mask mandate at ETHS went into effect Monday. All students and staff will be required to wear a mask indoors regardless of vaccination status.

The video in this story is from a previous report

The move by the school comes after the suburb moved into the “high” level of COVID-19 transmission last week.

Despite the elevated risk, Evanston’s Health and Human Services Director Ike Ogbo said the city is not bringing back mask mandates.

“But, we also have that in our tool box, if we continue to see a sustained high transmission rate in Evanston,” Ogbo said.

Instead, public health officials strongly recommend masking indoors, regardless of vaccine status and urge residents to get up to date with vaccination and boosters.

Could COVID mask mandates return?

Evanston’s Health and Human Services has made the following recommendations based on CDC guidelines:

-Wearing a mask indoors in public irrespective of vaccination status including K-12 schools and other indoor public settings
-Wearing a mask or respirator that provides greater protection if you are a high risk individual for severe disease
-Wearing a mask if you have symptoms, a positive test, or have had an exposure to someone with COVID-19
-Socializing outdoors if possible and avoiding poorly ventilated indoor settings

-Getting tested before attending a family or public event. Home tests are ideal for this purpose
– Contacting your doctor right away to get treatment for COVID-19 if you are diagnosed
– Staying up-to-date with COVID-19 vaccines and boosters.
– Following CDC recommendations for isolation and quarantine, including getting tested if you are exposed to COVID-19 or have symptoms of COVID-19.