On June 8, Washington State is implementing a new masking requirement in response to COVID-19. Per the Governor, all businesses are required to have employees wear cloth face coverings at the job site at all times. The only exception to this new rule is for employees who do not share an office or for employees who cannot wear a mask due to a medical condition or disability.

The state rule is in addition to the Kittitas County directive. The state rule applies to all business establishments and will be enforced by Labor and Industries. For example, if a business has employees in a shared space, regardless if they are six feet apart, the state rule requires those employees to wear a mask in that environment. If there is an outdoor location for dining, the state rule applies to that environment as well. The state rule is directed at employees and not patrons of a business. For questions around the new state masking requirement, please visit https://www.governor.wa.gov/sites/default/files/SafeStartPhasedReopening.pdf?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery . Kittitas County must abide by state requirements. Our county can be more restrictive than the state, but not less restrictive.

In regard to situations outside of the state business requirement, Kittitas County continues to ask people to wear cloth face coverings. If you are not able to maintain six feet of social distance, we request that you wear a cloth face covering to keep personal droplets from spreading to others.

If you have questions about your health, please contact your healthcare provider or you can call the Temporary COVID Clinic at KVH at 509-933-8850. If you are having a medical emergency, call 911 or go to the Emergency Department at KVH. If you have general questions about COVID-19, please call the EOC at 509-933-8315 or 509-933-8305.

Kittitas County, from the Cascades to the Columbia, and online at http://www.co.kittitas.wa.us