Mask mandate at all 4 Columbus-area health systems to end due to falling COVID, flu rates

Bill Bush, The Columbus Dispatch
Updated ·2 min read
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Fawn Huff, a multi-skill technician, has on a mask and a face shield before entering a patient's room on Aug. 17, 2021 at Mount Carmel St. Ann's in Westerville. The four major Columbus-area health care systems will by the end of this week end mask mandates at their facilities except for places like cancer wards or transplant areas.
Fawn Huff, a multi-skill technician, has on a mask and a face shield before entering a patient's room on Aug. 17, 2021 at Mount Carmel St. Ann's in Westerville. The four major Columbus-area health care systems will by the end of this week end mask mandates at their facilities except for places like cancer wards or transplant areas.
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Ending a three-year requirement, all four major Columbus-area health systems have or will drop mandates that patients and visitors wear masks in their facilities, citing falling COVID-19 and influenza-related illnesses and increasing immunity in the region.

Nationwide Children's Hospital ended the requirement Monday, while Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center, OhioHealth and Mount Carmel Health have all agreed to implement the new policy beginning Friday.

The systems throughout the pandemic have had ongoing discussions that have included government health officials about aligning their pandemic policies, said Jeff Klingler, president and CEO of the Central Ohio Hospital Council.

Certain hospital wards, like those dealing with cancer or transplant patients, may still require masks based on the circumstances, Klingler said. Masks are also recommended for visitors if they are experiencing any respiratory symptoms.

Masking policies will differ slightly for each health system, so the public is encouraged to check those details on each health system's website, he said.

Local health officials anticipate the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will change its masking guidance sometime next month.

Other more general masking mandates, such as in schools and on public transit, started being rolled back last year.

As for the future, whether masking is now a thing of the past or a seasonal requirement that may be implemented from time to time during outbreaks is unclear.

"I wish I had a crystal ball," Klingler said. "Time will tell."

Hospitals "don't want to ping pong on the policy," Klingler said. If there were to be a serious outbreak of COVID or influenza cases next fall or winter, they might revert back, he said, "but that's certainly not the goal."

"You certainly need to keep your eye on the trend and see what's happening next winter," he added.

The current decision was driven largely by data: In January 2022, hospitals in the central Ohio region hit a peak of 1,200 hospitalized COVID patients a day, while the current number has fallen to just 55.

The Ohio death toll from COVID 19 passed the 42,000 mark last week. As of March 29, 2023, the CDC reported a total of 1,125,366 COVID-19 deaths had been reported in the United States.

wbush@gannett.com

@reporterbush

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Mask mandates ending at all 4 major Columbus-area health systems