All University of Hawaii campuses reinstating indoor mask requirement

Starting Wednesday, all 10 University of Hawaii campuses are reinstating an indoor mask requirement because of rising COVID-19 transmission statewide.

“Reinstatement of the comprehensive indoor mask requirement will help prevent further spread of the COVID-19 virus and better protect the health of students and employees as every county in the state but one is currently assessed to have a ‘high’ level of COVID-19 community transmission by the CDC,” a statement from the university said. Only Hawaii County is at “medium.”

UH officials noted that the CDC today ranks the state with the 4th highest rate in the nation with an average 7-day case rate of 495.9 cases per 100,000 people.

The only exceptions to the systemwide indoor mask requirement are when working alone or separated from others by 6 feet or more.

The indoor mask requirement will be evaluated when the level of COVID-19 transmission in the state decreases, the statement said. Members of the UH community are encouraged to monitor their hawaii.edu email and UHNews.org for updates.