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Austin-Travis County masking order amended to include public colleges

By FOX 7 Austin Digital Team
Published  August 13, 2021 1:22pm CDT
Central Texas Schools and COVID-19
FOX 7 Austin

AUSTIN, Texas - The City of Austin and Travis County have announced Friday public colleges have been added to the locations requiring mandatory masking. 

The city initially released mandatory masking orders for schools on Aug. 11. The city says the new orders are effective immediately.

According to the latest orders and rules enacted by the City of Austin, Travis County, and Health Authority: 

  • Students, staff, and visitors over the age of two are REQUIRED to wear a face-covering while on school property or school buses during Stages 3, 4, and 5 as set forth in Austin Public Health’s Risk-Based Chart. This includes all public schools, including public charter schools and public colleges in the City of Austin and Travis County.
  • An individual over the age of two is REQUIRED to wear a face-covering while present on or in City and County property unless expressly exempted in Section 2 or by a City or County policy applicable to the premises or facility.

This current mandate is continuing to push back against Gov. Abbott's mask mandate ban. 

Mask debate continues as school year begins for some Central Texas schools

The start of the 2021 school year was supposed to bring back some kind of normalcy for students, but the Delta Variant has made it difficult.

The orders follow the move to Stage 5 of Austin Public Health's COVID-19 risk-based recommendations. 

Under Stage 5, the city and county recommend individuals to continue doing the following:

Fully vaccinated individuals should:  

  • Avoid large gatherings where masks are not required if you are a high-risk individual
  • Talk with your loved ones who may be unvaccinated about receiving the vaccine

Partially or unvaccinated individuals should:  

  • Get fully vaccinated
  • Stay home and avoid gatherings and travel
  • Choose curbside and delivery options
  • Wear a mask when conducting essential activities. Choose establishments that are protecting their customers and staff with mask-wearing, social distancing, and measures to stop the spread of COVID-19

Read the full orders here for City of Austin and Travis County. For COVID-19 updates, testing, and vaccination information visit www.AustinTexas.gov/COVID19.

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