Governor Inslee Announces Statewide Mask Mandate in Washington

On June 23, Governor Jay Inslee announced that facial coverings will be mandatory statewide.  Starting Friday, June 26, anyone in a public space must wear face coverings.  The mandate includes indoor public spaces and outdoor public areas where physical distancing of six feet is not possible.  Individuals may remove face coverings while eating or drinking at a restaurant.

Individuals with certain medical conditions and children under the age of two are exempt from wearing facial coverings in public.  Children between the ages of two and four are encouraged but not required to wear a facial covering in public.

This mandate comes on the heels of the June 20 announcement requiring facial coverings in Yakima County.  In addition to the requirement that individuals in Yakima County wear face coverings in public, businesses in Yakima County must require customers to wear masks and may not serve anyone who enters the business without a face covering.

Employers should remember that almost all workers are still required to wear cloth face coverings under the Safe Start Proclamation as discussed in a previous post.