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Montgomery County executive explains why you should wear a mask ahead of the holidays

When asked if the county has any plans to turn the recommendation into a mask mandate, the County Executive says that is not being considered at this point.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. — Just in time for holiday traveling, people are starting to get sick again which has prompted Montgomery County leaders to recommend masking up again on Wednesday.

Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich backed this recommendation Thursday and explained why people should consider the option. He stated that local hospitals are under stress, especially in their emergency departments, as cases of respiratory illness are on the rise.

“The good news this week is that we're seeing a reduction in RSV cases, but both flu and COVID rates continue to climb,” Elrich said.

As of Thursday, the county reported a COVID infection rate of around 122 cases per 100,000 people over the past seven days. That’s an increase from a rate of about 70, which was reported two weeks ago.

COVID is not the only issue area, the flu is becoming a problem, too.

Nationwide, there have been nearly 36,000 recorded cases – marking a big spike from just weeks ago.

Sean O’Donnell from the County’s Department of Health and Human Services says they’re seeing hospitalizations on the rise as well.

“When you look at the lower left, these are just emergency department visits not necessarily over inpatient hospitalizations," O'Donnell said. "But you can see our emergency department visits have been on average much higher than other parts of the year and on pace with what we saw last year during that incredible spike of, of COVID Omicron.”

These increases are notably all being seen as people are preparing to travel for the holidays.

AAA is estimating nearly 113 million people will be heading out of town.

When asked if the county has any plans to turn the recommendation into a mask mandate, Elrich says that is not being considered at this point.    

Watch Next: Travelers no longer need negative COVID-19 test results to re-enter the US

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