Los Angeles County is requiring masks to be worn indoors again as coronavirus cases spike throughout the region, fueled by the pathogen’s more contagious Delta variant and vaccine hesitancy. New cases have breached the 1,000 mark for three days running now, and they hit 1,500 Thursday, the highest level seen there since March. Though the mandate requires those who have been vaccinated to wear a mask when indoors as well, experts say that the vast majority of new COVID-19 cases are being recorded among those who have not been vaccinated, as are new deaths from the respiratory illness. The mandate goes into effect at 11:59 p.m. Saturday. Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday, “If we want to extinguish this pandemic, this disease, we've got to get vaccinated. Period.”
