Gov. Cooper Lifts Many COVID-19 Restrictions

State lifts gathering limits, social distancing requirements in all settings and indoor mask mandate for most settings

Today, Governor Roy Cooper and North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy K. Cohen, M.D. shared an update on the stateā€™s COVID-19 progress.

Following Thursdayā€™s guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that fully vaccinated individuals can safely do most activities without wearing a mask or the need to social distance from others, the state will remove its indoor mask mandate for most settings. Additionally, the state will lift all mass gathering limits and social distancing requirements. These changes are now in effect as of 1:30 PM today (Friday).

ā€œWe can take this step today because the science shows our focus on getting people vaccinated is working,ā€ said Governor Cooper. ā€œBut to keep moving forward ā€“ and to make sure that we keep saving lives ā€“ more people need to get vaccinated.ā€

The ability to lift restrictions sooner than anticipated following the CDCā€™s guidance shows the importance of vaccinating all North Carolinians. As of this week, even more people can get vaccinated. Younger teens between 12 and 15 can now get the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.ā€ÆYoung people are vulnerable to the COVID-19 virus, just like everyone else, andā€Æthe percent of COVID-19 cases in North Carolina children 17 and under has been increasing. 

North Carolina continues to focus on distributing vaccines quickly and equitably. To date, the state has administered over 7.7 million doses. 51% percent of those 18 and up are at least partially vaccinated, and 46% percent of those 18 and up have been fully vaccinated. 

ā€œI am so proud of the incredible progress we have made in beating back this pandemic,ā€ said Secretary Mandy K. Cohen, M.D. ā€œVaccines continue to be incredibly effective at protecting individuals from this terrible virus. And as more and more people get vaccinated, the results show in our stable metrics with lower cases, lower hospitalizations, and lower deaths.ā€  

In accordance with the new CDC guidance, there will still be certain settings where masks and other safety measures will be required. Masks will still be required in child care, schools and camps as most children are either not yet vaccinated or are not yet eligible to be vaccinated. Everyone, including people who are fully vaccinated will still be required to wear a mask in certain settings such as public transportation, health care settings like hospitals, doctorā€™s offices and long-term care settings like nursing homes, and certain congregate settings like correctional facilities and homeless shelters. 

NCDHHS will continue to have strong public health recommendations for individuals to continue to protect one another until more people are vaccinated. People who are not vaccinated should wear a mask and maintain distance in all indoor public settings and in outdoor settings when they can’t maintain six feet of distance.

Masks are strongly recommended for everyone at large crowded indoor events like sporting events and live performances. 

NCDHHS recommends public facing businesses post signage reminding guests to social distance and wear a face covering if they are not fully vaccinated; remind employees to self-monitor for symptoms of COVID-19; have a plan to immediately isolate and remove sick workers; and clean high-touch surfaces once a day. Businesses may choose to continue to require that their customers wear masks. 

The Department of Health and Human Services will also continue to expand strategies to reach people who have not yet gotten vaccinated. 

Information on the stateā€™s vaccine distribution is available at YourSpotYourShot.nc.gov (English) or Vacunate.nc.gov (Spanish). People can find nearby vaccine providers using NCDHHSā€™ online tool, Find a Vaccine Location. The stateā€™s COVID-19 vaccine hotline number is 888-675-4567.


Read the Executive Order.
Read a FAQ about todayā€™s Order

4 COMMENTS

  1. Wait…I thought kids weren’t super spreaders. Why the f**k are we still making them wear masks?

  2. Yeah, šŸ™„, I stopped participating in the shamdemic sometime last year. That includes feckless Cooper’s unconstitutional mask edict.

  3. The pandemic served it purpose to allow 40 million Democrats to vote 80 million times. The Johnston County Board of Election Department Head saved Thom Tillis seat by being cautious and making sure the numbers were correct and reporting those numbers so late that Durham, Raleigh and Charlotte could not manufacture the needed votes to push play boy Cal Cunningham to victory. Thom Tillis owes Lee Anne a big thank you for not knowing how her cautious and desire to be accurate delivered him to a victory.

  4. Went to the grocery store yesterday and saw the “mask required” sign was gone. However I noticed that probably 90% of the customers were still wearing masks. It appears the social conditioning experiment has been a success. Glad I never took part in it to begin with.

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