Hamden Mayor Curt Leng announced that the town’s mask mandate will be lifted in outdoor and indoor gatherings, excluding town faculty buildings, in a press release Friday, Oct. 29.
This will not affect Quinnipiac University’s decision to enforce a mask mandate in its facilities, as it is a private organization.
This decision revokes Emergency Order No. 10 which previously dictated that all Hamden persons, regardless of vaccination status, had to be masked indoors and for outside gatherings containing more than 250 people. As polling locations fall under municipal regulations, anyone that shows up to vote in Tuesday’s mayoral race must be masked. Public schools also fall under the mask mandate.
According to Connecticut’s state COVID-19 map, Hamden dropped to “yellow” status, which means five to nine COVID-19 cases per 100,000 cases from Oct. 10-23. The town was previously at “orange,” which meant 10-14 cases per 100,000 cases.
As of Oct. 27, Hamden’s full vaccination rate is at 71.9%, according to the Connecticut Department of Public Health. Over 70% of Connecticut residents are fully vaccinated. It is still “highly recommended” by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to wear a mask as a protective measure against COVID-19.