Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms held a press conference Tuesday to explain her decision last week to sign an executive order requiring that people wear masks in all indoor public spaces, including inside private businesses.
Bottoms said the city has returned to Phase 3 of its coronavirus reopening plan, which in addition to mandating masks also encourages businesses to operate with limited occupancy to maintain social distancing.
Atlanta is operating within a five-phase COVID-19 Response Plan, with Phase 1 being a total stay-at-home order. Bottoms said at City Hall Tuesday morning that the city is not planning to impose a lockdown at this time.
The mayor said that while Atlanta’s vaccination rate is higher than the statewide average, “we still have a very, very, very long way to go.”
Emory University infectious disease expert Dr. Carlos del Rio appeared with Bottoms at the press conference. He acknowledged that “people are frustrated,” but joined Bottoms in encouraging everyone who is eligible to get vaccinated as soon as possible.
“Please do not wait to get vaccinated. It is not worth it,” Bottoms said.
Bottoms’ order requires all people in the city to wear masks indoors when in public, which is any place other than a personal vehicle or home.
Atlanta entered Phase 4 of its reopening plan in June to allow city employees to return to government buildings. The mayor’s office initially planned to fully reopen city buildings to the public this month, though they never stated if the city was reaching its “new normal” under Phase 5, which is essentially a return to larger gatherings and live events without masks.
But Atlanta rescinded its full reopening plans last week after Bottoms signed the executive order.
Enforcement of the mandate includes an initial warning and opportunity for the violator to put on a mask. If the person refuses, and refuses to leave the building, they are subject to a $25 fine for the first offense and a $50 fine for subsequent violations.
Although no vaccine assures complete protection, del Rio said health experts initially reported “remarkable progress because of vaccinations.” But the emergence of the delta variant “really changed the game and it does that because this variant is highly transmissible,” he said.
“We’re seeing an increase in hospitalizations across the state. Ninety-seven percent of hospitalized patients have not been vaccinated. So again, it is really the vaccines that will protect you from getting hospitalized and dying,” he said.
The two mRNA vaccines are about 95% effective in preventing symptomatic disease against the original strain of COVID-19.
With the delta variant, the protection drops to about 88% effectiveness in preventing symptomatic disease for people who have had both shots. However, the vaccines remain highly effective at preventing hospitalizations or deaths from delta, according to the available research.
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