San Francisco Businesses React To Upcoming End Of Indoor Mask Mandate
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- The majority of Bay Area counties including San Francisco will follow the state and drop indoor mask mandates soon, due to the plunging numbers of new COVID cases.
Starting February 16, vaccinated individuals will no longer have to wear masks in most indoor settings including restaurants, bars, grocery stores, offices, and museums. The mandate remains in place in San Francisco for unvaccinated individuals.
Ripley's Believe It or Not! museum at Fisherman's Wharf says it expects to get more visitors once the city drops the indoor mask mandate.
"Since a lot of tourists come to the pier, it's probably a lot like since a lot of people that aren't from California don't like wearing masks, I feel like it would bring a lot more people in honestly," said cashier Jasmine Castillo.
Castillo says it's tough to police visitors about mask policies.
"If you walk through the museum, we have to keep telling them to put it back on, and it's a struggle," she said.
The state says businesses can still choose to uphold the indoor mask requirement. Unvaccinated people will still have to wear masks indoors in all public settings.
Some aren't ready to give up the mask just yet.
Ivan Liang works at Wharf Central souvenir shop.
"I'm still going to keep wearing my mask no matter what," Liang said. "I'm vaccinated right now, but I'm still going to be wearing my mask."
Many people at Fisherman's Wharf Friday evening were still wearing masks outdoors.
"Right now, I go out I feel like a lot of people that got it they developed immunity to it and they're ready to have fun again," said Luke Will of San Francisco, who is ready to embrace the new rules.
"I think if you want to wear it, wear it, if not, get back to normal," said another San Francisco resident.
Masks will still be required in some settings like on public transportation, at hospitals, and schools.