NORFOLK, Va. — Mask mandates were widely used during the COVID-19 pandemic. But because of a recent decline in cases, hospitals in Hampton Roads are relaxing the rules.
On Monday, healthcare systems in Hampton roads including Chesapeake Regional, the Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters, Riverside, Bon Secours and Sentara released a joint statement, saying the time has come to lift the veil, or rather the mask.
A Virginia woman who preferred not to be named or shown on camera told News 3's Danielle Saiita she is immunocompromised and is in remission for CML, a type of cancer that affects white blood cells. This means she's extra cautious about contracting illness.
"My family uses hand sanitizer, we wash our hands, wear a mask and keep distance," she said. "Honestly, I'm still doing everything that I was doing before even though they decided to open up everything."
The woman, who we will call Mary, said the news that healthcare systems in Hampton Roads would be lifting the no-mask requirement hasn't been received well.
"I don't feel very comfortable about it. It's kind of scary," Mary said. "The first thing I thought about is Covid is not gone and that there are airborne things still going on with people waiting in the waiting room to be seen."
However, there are still some rules that apply to patients. Those who need treatment for respiratory illnesses are advised to keep wearing masks to prevent the spread of illness.
"The reason is that the amount of COVID in the communities is at all-time lows. The transmission has also been decreasing," said Dr. Joel Bundy with Sentara. "With the subvariants, we have now the subvariants are less variant they're less harmful their less injurious and hospitalizations have decreased."
According to the Virginia Hospital and Health Association, there are currently 295 confirmed positive cases of COVID in Virginia.
Since January, data from the Virginia Department of Health shows that there were close to 2,500 cases which have since declined to fewer than 400.
Mary said for others healthier than her, this lifted requirement might be welcomed, but she feels the opposite.
"I can't put my life in the hands of bureaucracy," she said. I have to be on the side of caution and common sense because there's only one of me and I'm responsible for—myself and my child. And as the daughter of an elderly father, I need to make sure he is safe, as well."
