News and Events

Face masks are no longer required on campus. On Friday, the CDC updated the metrics used to inform their mitigation recommendations, most importantly including masks. Their measure now has three levels, based on a mix of case rates, total new COVID-19 admissions over 7 days, and the 7-day average of percent of staffed inpatient beds occupied:

• Low (green): Masks are not required at the "low" level.
• Medium (yellow): At "medium," the recommendation on masks is to "talk to your healthcare provider" if you are at high risk for severe illness about whether you need to wear a mask, so it's at the individual level and not a global mask recommendation.
• High (orange): At "high," the recommendation is to "wear a mask indoors in public." 

**Individuals that have tested positive for COVID-19 or that have been in close contact with someone that has tested positive will still need to wear a tight-fitting mask while on campus for ten days after their test or exposure.

Regardless of county-level data, individuals may choose to continue wearing masks, and we all need to respect and support those choices except in circumstances where masks present a safety risk (e.g. in certain lab contexts). In addition, the updated CDC guidance recommends that individuals who are immunocompromised or at a high risk for severe disease should talk to their healthcare provider about whether masks or other precautions are warranted.

Looking ahead, assuming that Douglas County remains at the "low" or "medium" community level, there will be no systemwide mask requirement planned for the summer nor fall 2022 terms. If local community levels or campus cases increase, then masking requirements may be reimplemented after consultation with MDH, local public health officials, and the system office.

Healthcare/Clinical

The CDC has not updated its masking guidance for healthcare and clinical settings. As a result, campus clinical settings, will remain subject to indoor masking requirements until that guidance changes. If you have any questions about masks in clinical or other programmatic settings, please contact your instructor.

If you have symptoms...

Please report if you are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 or have had a positive COVID-19 test by email to ATCCCOVID19@alextech.edu.