Orange County is officially in phase two of its staged approach to lifting its county-wide mask mandate. 

Mayor Jerry Demings says that means residents don’t have to wear face masks outdoors, but are still required to wear them indoors unless they’re eating or drinking. 

But Demings says he strongly recommends face masks both indoors and outdoors to anyone who is not fully vaccinated yet.

“And if you have not been vaccinated, then you should consider wearing a facial covering. You should consider protecting yourself, your family members. If you have children, you should consider protecting them by wearing facial coverings.”

The CDC changed its face mask policy yesterday, saying fully vaccinated people don’t need to wear masks unless they are taking public transport or in medical settings. 

Demings says they too, also recommend unvaccinated people continue to cover up.

“If you follow the CDC guidelines for those who are fully vaccinated, the guidelines really impact that group the most. If you’re fully vaccinated, they’re saying that you should not be required to wear facial coverings. But if you are not vaccinated, they’re recommending that you do wear facial coverings.”

Demings says he expects the county to reach a 70 percent vaccination rate by July 4th which will effectively end the county’s mask mandate completely. 

Happy Friday! As a community, let’s build immunity against COVID-19.

As of May 14, 2021:
✅ 50% of Orange County residents 16+ have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine
✅ Two-week rolling positivity rate: 5.7%

🍊 Let’s fill that orange! #IGotMyShot. pic.twitter.com/wCt7rPkis2

— Orange County FL (@OrangeCoFL) May 14, 2021