Businesses can choose to require masks, and in many cities, they must still be worn inside municipal buildings. In Austin, officials said they would keep in place a local ordinance requiring masks and were bracing for a legal fight with Mr. Abbott and his administration.
Houston, Dallas and Austin were among the cities where school systems said students and staff members were still required to wear masks. But in Johnson City, west of Austin, the school board on Tuesday voted, 4-3, to drop the mask mandate. Lubbock-Cooper Independent School District, which covers an upscale suburban area near Lubbock, sent an email to parents saying that masks were now optional. And in Lubbock, the matter is scheduled for debate on Thursday.
The Status of the Pandemic, in Three Charts
Virus trends in the U.S. are improving, largely because of the rising level of immunity.
Amber Jowers, a bartender, took down “mask required” signs in San Antonio yesterday.Credit.Matthew Busch for The New York Times
March 11, 2021
Public discussion of “herd immunity” often treats it like an on-off switch: When the U.S. reaches herd immunity, the crisis will be over; until then, the country has little immunity from Covid-19.
But that’s not right.
Herd immunity is more like a light dimmer. The more people develop immunity either from having been infected or from being vaccinated the less easily the virus will spread.
Covid-19: Biden Administration Opens Nursing Home Doors
Last Updated
April 5, 2021, 5:01 p.m. ETApril 5, 2021, 5:01 p.m. ET
Under new guidance, guests can visit residents indoors even without vaccinations. Texas opens up, no masks required, and Maryland will drop most restrictions starting on Friday. A chunk of Hollywood is in Australia, sidestepping the pandemic.
Here’s what you need to know:
A resident at the Good Shepherd nursing home in Wheeling, W.Va., in February. New guidelines from the Biden administration have loosened restrictions on visits to nursing home residents.Credit.Amr Alfiky/The New York Times
The Biden administration on Wednesday published revised guidelines for nursing home visits during the pandemic, allowing guests the freedom to go inside to see residents regardless of whether the visitors or the residents have been vaccinated.
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