Kaiser Permanente REMOVES patient mask mandate at Santa Rosa location after backlash

On Thursday, Kaiser Permanente in Santa Rosa once again revised its Covid policy, stating that the mask mandate would only be applied to physicians and staff and not to patients.

According to The Press Democrat, Kaiser officials said in an email that it is "strongly encouraging masks for patients, members, and visitors in the hospital and medical offices in the Santa Rosa Service Area in response to this latest increase in COVID-19 cases."

Some patients said that they had visited the Kaiser location this week and saw other people not wearing masks even after the mandate was reinstated on Tuesday. Some Kaiser managers notified their staff on Wednesday that the mandate only applied to staff members and physicians.

"Visitors, patients, and members are strongly encouraged to also wear masks in these settings,” the statement said. “We have not changed our masking requirements in the hospital, which have been in effect since April: employees and physicians are required to wear masks and we ask visitors to wear masks when in the hospital."

The mask mandate was reinstated due to rising numbers of Covid patients over the past three weeks.

As a small increase in cases is being seen, CNN has claimed that "it’s time to dust off those N95 masks" if you’re at a high risk of serious illness or death.

"Regardless of how you may feel about wearing a mask, the reality is that COVID-19 is here to stay, experts said, and we will need to continue to adapt," CNN wrote.