California County Mandates Masks in Private Homes

Amid the spike in COVID cases in the San Francisco Bay Area, Santa Cruz County has imposed a sweeping indoor mask mandate for private settings including homes.

For those gathering with people who don’t live in the same household, masks should be worn inside regardless of vaccination status, the county announced Monday. The guidelines also apply to businesses, with exceptions for eating and drinking.

Santa Cruz County was the first in California to drop its indoor mask mandate but is reinstating it as COVID cases rise.

“Unfortunately, a potential winter surge appears to be a...