HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero remains open to lifting the nearly two-year-old mask mandate and other restrictions if data on Covid-19 hospitalizations, deaths and positivity rates support it, her office stated Tuesday.
As of Tuesday night, the governor’s office had not released specific thresholds and timelines that would trigger the lifting of the mask mandate, even as more states are now doing away with the restriction.
2 more deaths
The number of Guam’s Covid-19-related deaths continues to climb, now reaching 330 since March 2020, after two more deaths were reported Tuesday.
About 60 of the deaths were reported during the first two months of 2022, which translates roughly to an average of one death every day this year.
Daily hospitalization numbers remain in the dozens, but the positivity rate continues to decline. The Omicron variant surge brought case numbers as high as 850 a day, but that’s down to 273 as of Monday.
“Gov. Leon Guerrero has remained open to lifting restrictions, as long as data supports it,” said Krystal Paco-San Agustin, the governor’s director of communications.
Hours earlier, Sen. James Moylan sent to the media a copy of his March 1 letter to the governor, inquiring about her plans regarding the mask mandate.
“If your decision is to hold off on lifting this mandate, then all we ask is for a simple response on what prompted that decision, and if there are timelines in place for the community to embrace,” Moylan wrote.
The governor recently lifted the requirement to show proof of Covid-19 vaccination in order to enter restaurants, bars and other establishments.
This comes after the full vaccination rate for eligible residents 5 years old and older exceeded 95%.
Besides the mask mandate, there remain limits on the number of people in indoor and outdoor social gatherings.
Lou Leon Guerrero
