Even as COVID cases rise, mask mandates stay shelved

By BOBBY CAINA CALVAN and STEVE LeBLANC
Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — As mask mandates and vaccination rules kept falling across the U.S., infections from the latest COVID variants have been quietly taking hold in some places, sparking concern among public health officials but stirring a muted response from pretty much everyone else. More cities are now in new high-risk categories that are supposed to trigger indoor mask wearing, but there’s been little appetite to do so. Much of upstate New York is in a high-alert category that reflects serious community spread. In New York City, cases are rising again, but it’s unlikely Mayor Eric Adams will do an about face just a few months after many in his city shed masks and put away vaccination cards.