Friends and neighbors,

The winter surge of COVID-19 is stretching our local hospitals past the point of their capacity.

To help slow the spread of the highly transmissible Omicron variant, Gov. John Carney today announced Delawareans will be required to wear masks in public spaces, starting at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, 1/11/2022. This includes stores, restaurants, bars, gyms, casinos, malls and hair salons. Houses of worship are exempt. No indoor capacity limits are being set at this time.

The governor on Monday also announced plans to extend the existing mask mandate for schools and child care facilities beyond Feb. 8 while steps are being taken to bolster the ranks of school staff by allowing recently retired teachers to return as substitutes.

Finally, the governor is deploying 70 additional members of the Delaware National Guard to help with non-clinical operations inside local hospitals statewide, starting Tuesday.

More than 300 members of the Delaware National Guard are assisting with COVID-19 response efforts – including support at vaccination and testing locations, help with PPE distribution, and hospital assistance. Roughly 110 members of the Guard – separate from the 70 members deployed on Monday – are training to serve as certified nursing assistants in health care settings statewide to take pressure off hospital systems.

Please do your part by wearing your mask in public places and getting vaccinated.

Vaccination remains the strongest protection against COVID-19. Click here to get yours.

Delawareans over the age of 12 who received their second shot over 6 months ago are encouraged to get their booster shot. Click here to find out where to get your booster.

Thank you,

Nicole Poore
Senator, District 12