While many New Hampshire cities and towns are pulling back their COVID restrictions, the Hopkinton Select Board passed its first mask mandate Thursday night.
The ordinance, which would require masks to be worn when entering the town’s businesses or restaurants, passed 4-1 and took effect immediately. Wearing masks on public trails, sidewalks and recreational lands is “strongly encouraged” if social distancing cannot occur, according to the document that is set to expire on July 1.
The select board members in favor of the restriction cited the continuously high prevalence of COVID-19 in the community and children’s limited access to the vaccine as the primary reason for instating the mandate.
Sabrina Dunlap, the chair of the Hopkinton Select Board, said of the nearly 30 emails she received about the mask mandate, only a handful were in opposition.
“I would remind everyone that not everyone is vaccinated,” she said. “A lot of people can’t get vaccinated, including kids.”
Steven Whitley, a member of the select board, said it wouldn’t change much for most people because most businesses already require guests to wear masks.
Kevin Connally, a member of the public who spoke in opposition, questioned how the ordinance would be helpful if there is no way to enforce it.
“If it’s not going to be enforced, what’s the point?” he asked.
Dunlap said, like the state-wide mask mandate which did not have a penalty for individuals who choose to flout the new mandate, the ordinance is in place to help set norms and give businesses something to point to when requiring masks in their facilities.
Another resident, Elizabeth Sides, said she supported the ordinance to protect the community, like kids under 16, who aren’t yet eligible to take the COVID-19 vaccine.
“This is about protecting people that can’t get the vaccine right now,” she said. “In the whole scope of everything, I do not think this is a big deal.”
Since Gov. Chris Sununu announced the state-wide mask mandate would lapse in mid-April, local officials have primarily been responsible for deciding whether Granite Staters in businesses and public spaces need to wear masks.
Some cities, like Claremont, have decided to follow the state’s example and drop their mask advisory. Others, like Lebanon and Enfield, have decided to wait and see if their local COVID metrics improve in the next month.
Officials from Lebanon and Enfield said they would rescind their mask ordinances in June if new cases of COVID-19 continued to decline and the number of vaccinations continued to improve.
Cases of COVID-19 in New Hampshire have been steadily declining since mid-April and the state now reports an average of 233 new cases a day, a rate far lower than the state’s worst wave in December but still significantly higher than the first wave last spring.
Meanwhile, the number of fully vaccinated adults has been steadily increasing. As of Thursday, 36% of the population had been fully vaccinated.
As more Americans have gotten vaccinated, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has loosened its mask guidance for people two weeks out from their final dose.
The CDC recently announced that fully vaccinated individuals do not need to wear masks when gathering outside in small groups as long as unvaccinated people around them are not high-risk.
Concord’s City Council was asked by one resident to rescind its mask mandate, which went into effect on Aug. 31, 2020 and extends until June 1. Mayor Jim Bouley said there are no plans to rescind the mandate before then.