The Routt County Board of Health is expected to institute a mask mandate in almost all public indoor spaces in Routt County at a meeting scheduled for 2 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 4.

Routt County has not had a mask mandate of any kind since May, and county commissioners, who make up the board of health, resisted reinstating any mandate when cases spiked earlier this fall, pointing to high local vaccination rates and a lack of mandates at the state level.

But the omicron variant is leading to a torrent of new COVID-19 cases with 410 cases reported in the last seven days. The positivity rate is more than 19%, meaning about one out of every five COVID-19 tests reported to the public health department are coming back positive.

The top eight days for new cases since the start of the pandemic have all been in the last two weeks.

“All individuals 2 years old or older shall cover their nose and mouth with a face covering when in public indoor spaces unless the nature of the business (such as dentistry or personal care) requires the removal of the face covering,” the draft order reads.

The Routt County Public Health Department has recommended instituting the mandate in the draft order. The Board of Health will meet virtually to consider to order. The meeting can be found at this link.

To reach Dylan Anderson, call 970-871-4247 or email danderson@SteamboatPilot.com.