Arlington To Start Revisiting Mask Mandates

ARLINGTON, MA — Arlington will start revisiting its masking policies as the state rolls back its own mandates.

Speaking to ACMi on Thursday, Town Manager Adam Chapdelaine said the Board of Health will "likely consider" the indoor mask mandate for indoor public spaces at its meeting next week. The superintendent, meanwhile, will work with the school committee to consider the future of the masking requirement in schools.

"We will look at it very closely, we'll look at what our neighbors are doing in surrounding communities, and look at both data, science and our comparable communities, and hopefully within the next week or two make a decision about where we'll stand," Chapdelaine said.

The question came amid Wednesday's announcement that the statewide mask order in schools will not be extended a fourth time. Gov. Charlie Baker and DESE Commissioner Jeffrey Riley cited high vaccination rates across the state, rapidly dropping coronavirus cases and hospitalizations from the winter omicron surge, and out of a desire to return to "the familiar and normal aspects of school life" nearly two years after the onset of the COVID-19 crisis.

Starting Feb. 28, individual districts will have the choice to make masks optional or continue to mandate them for indoor spaces.