No new mask rule amid Sonoma County’s stable COVID-19 rates, but things could change quickly

Sonoma County health officials said for now there will be no change to local COVID-19 masking guidance — which is strongly advised for indoor settings but not mandated — as one Bay Area county has reinstated its indoor mask rule amid rising transmission rates and hospitalizations.

Local officials said hospitalization and infection rates remain stable, though that could quickly change.

As of Friday morning, Alameda County became the first Bay Area county to reinstate the indoor masking requirement, which was lifted statewide in mid-February as case rates dropped rapidly from the omicron-fueled winter surge.

The action in Alameda County was announced the same day the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention placed Sonoma County and 12 other California counties into the “high” community level for COVID-19 danger.

But infection rates in Sonoma County have stabilized in recent days, if not declined a little. The seven-day average infection rate for the past 10 days has dropped from 46.2 new daily cases per 100,000 people to 37 new daily cases per 100,000 people.

Hospitalizations have also declined slightly, from 48 on May 27 to 35 on June 2, the latest data available. Local health officials say it’s still too early to tell whether the declines represent a favorable trend, and cases are expected to rise following the recent Memorial Day weekend.

Infectious disease specialists say case rates of COVID-19, influenza, rhinovirus and other respiratory illnesses have been on the rise as residents become less vigilant.

Dr. Gary Green, an infectious disease specialist with Sutter Santa Rosa Regional Hospital, said he’s been seeing an increasing number of flu and rhinovirus cases, the latter being the most likely cause of the common cold.

Dr. D. Scott Smith, chief of infectious disease and geographic medicine for Kaiser Permanente, said that while common cold viruses are not tracked or tested, medical personnel are reporting more patients with cold symptoms. Smith, who is Kaiser’s lead regional flu expert, said the recent surge of both COVID-19 and flu is a marker for increases in other respiratory infections.

“That suggests that there's less protective strategies in place, like social distancing and not gathering in groups, wearing masks and all the rest that have gone by the wayside,” Smith said. “We're seeing what you would expect with the increase in upper respiratory viral infections.”

Smith said the implementation of an indoor mask rule would likely help curb the number of upper respiratory viral infections. But he said people are “quite hesitant” to seeing strict pandemic-era mandates reinstated.

Smith pointed out that current hospitalization rates are likely being kept low through the widespread use of the oral antiviral drug Paxlovid and bebtelovimab, the only monoclonal antibody treatment that works against the omicron variant.

Kaiser provides these two treatments on an outpatient basis, for less severe cases of COVID-19 and usually for higher risk populations, including those with underlying health conditions or who are unvaccinated or undervaccinated. Smith said all infections are going to have to be managed and treated, even if patients don’t end up being admitted into the hospital or in intensive care.

“The behaviors that you put in place work and just because they are low rates of hospitalizations ... it doesn't mean that we can suddenly all do what we were doing and go back to ‘normal,’” Smith said. “That would increase transmission of all kinds of viruses, including influenza especially, but also COVID.”

Staff Writer Martin Espinoza at 707-521-5213 or martin.espinoza@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @pressreno.