Governor Pritzker Expected To Announce Mask Mandate Wednesday Afternoon

SPRINGFIELD - Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker is expected to announce a mask mandate for all K-12 schools in Illinois after rising cases statewide of COVID-19. The decision will likely be discussed at 2:30 p.m. at the Thompson Center in Chicago with a normal COVID-19 update.

The Illinois Department of Public Health last week agreed to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's new recommendations for masking all students in K-12 schools indoors. The recommendation is also for all teachers, administration, support staff, and visitors to schools throughout the state.

In a Monday, Aug. 2, 2021, report, 96 of Illinois’ 102 counties - including all counties in the Chicago area - were experiencing significant levels of community transmission. A large amount of new COVID-19 cases sparked the recommendation to mask indoors in Illinois schools, regardless of vaccination status.