CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Some doctors are predicting an ongoing rise in COVID-19 cases as the summer continues.
Several Charlotte-area counties have shifted into the CDC's “high” community COVID-19 level, including Mecklenburg, Union, Rowan and Iredell.
Health experts are pushing the same protective measures we’ve been using all along.
“We are seeing similar levels of presence of virus in wastewater that we saw levels similar to a couple of months ago," Dr. Raynard Washington, Mecklenburg County health director, said.
Mecklenburg county’s mask mandate was lifted at the end of February, right as the omicron wave was dying down.
But the CDC recommends masking in crowded, public places and for counties in the high level.
So, does that mean a mask mandate could return to Mecklenburg County?
“We’ve been at this for quite some time now and continue to communicate regularly about what tools are available to folks so I don’t believe at this time we would entertain any sort of enforcement tools, but of course advising folks based on the current risk in the community," Washington said.
School districts can come up with their own masking rules without a county mandate. Doctors are recommending children eligible for a booster get one before heading back to class.
“We need to have them boosted, shore up their immunity for the start of the school year so they can have a really good start to the school year rather than getting sick right away," Atrium Health doctor, Christopher Ohl, said. "No one likes their kid to be sick fortunately most kids with covid don’t get serious infections but it can happen."
Contact Chloe Leshner at cleshner@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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