Block Island Times

Council lifts indoor mask mandate

The Town Council repealed its indoor mask mandate on Wednesday night by a vote of four to one, effective immediately. The council heard from Dr. Thomas Warcup, Director of the Block Island Medical Center, who informed them of the decreasing number of cases in the region and the very high level of vaccination rate on Block Island. Comparing the case numbers to last year, Warcup said the number of covid cases seemed to “plummet” in February and March, 2021, and he is seeing the same trend this year.Since the beginning of the pandemic, Block Island has seen 191 cases total. Warcup reported one case on Wednesday. He said 1207 people who list Block Island astheir address have been vaccinated, either on-island at the vaccination clinics, or off-island at another location.
“Our immunity is quite good,” Warcup said, and suggested that the council could adjust the mask mandate.Council Member Martha Ball reminded everyone that prior to the most recent mask mandate, New Shoreham had been in line with the state guidelines. In the beginning, Block Island was stricter with covid protocols than the state, but adjusted to match the state guidelines. The mask mandate put in place in September

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