PORTLAND, Ore. — Seven counties in Oregon are now under Gov. Kate Brown's face masks mandate until further notice. The order applies to everyone entering inside wherever the public is welcome.
That includes grocery stores, movie theaters, restaurants and bars, and hair salons. A business listed below cannot opt out of the state mandatory face covering mandate by the governor. There are some exceptions.
Businesses that are impacted
The list of businesses in Phase 1 counties and regions impacted by the face mask mandate are:
- Grocery stores
- Fitness-related organizations
- Pharmacies
- Public transit agencies and providers
- Personal services providers
- Restaurants, bars, breweries, brewpubs, wineries, tasting room and distilleries
- Retail stores, shopping centers and malls
- Ride sharing services
Businesses in Phase 2 counties and regions include:
- Indoor licensed swimming pool, licensed spa pool and sports court operators
- Indoor entertainment facility operators
- Indoor recreational sports operators for specified sports
- Indoor venue operators
But Gov. Brown said there may be mask, face shield or face covering requirements that apply to businesses not listed above. Those businesses should review other comparable industry guidance for requirements and recommendations.
Requirements for businesses
- Must require employees, contractors, volunteers, customers and visitors to wear a mask, face shield, or face covering, unless an accommodation is required by law or one of the listed exemptions applies.
- Employees, contractors and volunteers are not required to wear a mask while eating or drinking, or while working in a location where 6 feet of space or more can be maintained between other employees.
- Businesses must also provide masks, face shields, or face coverings for employees, or provide accommodations for those who are exempt from wearing them.
- Required to post clear signs about the mask, face shield, or face-covering requirements.
Recommendations for businesses
- Provide, at no cost, face coverings for customers and visitors who do not have one. Disposable masks will suffice.
- Post signs about the mask, face shield, or face covering requirement in languages that are commonly spoken by customers and visitors.
- Educate employees on how to safely work and communicate with people who cannot wear face coverings. And inform them they may need to remove their own face coverings while communicating with a person who needs to read lips or see facial expressions to communicate.
Requirements for the public
Customers and visitors of businesses are required to wear a mask, face shield or face covering when at a business unless they:
- Are under 12 years of age
- Have a medical condition that makes it hard to breathe when wearing a mask, face shield, or face covering
- Have a disability that prevents them from wearing a mask, face shield, or face covering
Customers and visitors do not have to wear face masks in restaurants, bars, breweries, brewpubs, wineries, tasting rooms and distilleries while eating or drinking. Face coverings are also not required for customers engaged in activities that make face coverings infeasible, such as strenuous physical exercise, singing or playing an instrument - as long as they can still maintain six feet of distance from others.
Guidance for customers with children 12 and under
- Children under the age of two don't need to wear a mask, face shield, or face covering.
- For children between 2 and 12 years old, it's strongly recommended that they wear a mask, face shield, or face covering at all times in places like grocery stores or pharmacies, where they likely cannot maintain 6 feet of physical distance from people outside their household, and where there may be vulnerable customers.
- Because children can have challenges wearing face coverings properly, and because in some cases safety issues with the face coverings may arise, adults are expected to assist and supervise them closely.
"We wear face coverings to protect the doctors and nurses working day and night in hospitals and clinics around the state," Gov. Brown said Friday. "We wear them to protect our elderly neighbors. We wear them to protect kids in cancer treatment and people with compromised immune systems. We wear them to protect the grocery store clerk and the pizza delivery gal. We wear them because we don’t want to accidentally kill someone.
"It’s really that simple: Face coverings save lives."
The Washington County Sheriff's Office says it has received a dozen phone calls a day asking whether or not it's illegal to wear a mask while owning a concealed handgun license. The answer is no. A representative for the sheriff's office says nowhere in ORS 166.129 does it state that it would be illegal to do so. They just ask that you do so lawfully.