NYC to Fine People Who Refuse to Wear Masks

NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that the city will fine people who refuse to wear a face mask starting Tuesday, following an uptick in Coronavirus cases.

VINnews

NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that the city will fine people who refuse to wear a face mask starting Tuesday, following an uptick in Coronavirus cases. The fines will be issued to those who refuse to wear a mask even after being offered a free mask and a warning that not wearing it will result in a fine.

The mayor noted that 9 zip codes are experiencing most of the increases. “The daily number is much affected by the challenges we are seeing in those nine zip codes,” the mayor said.

The 9 areas that have been fueling a surge in the city’s coronavirus rate are Gravesend/Homecrest, Midwood, Kew Gardens, Edgemere/Far Rockaway, Borough Park, Bensonhurst/Mapleton, Gerritsen Beach/Homecrest/Sheepshead Bay and Flatlands/Midwood.

Patrols will start issuing fines to people who refuse to wear masks even after being offered a free mask and a warning that not wearing it will result in a fine.

“That will happen aggressively. Clearly, our goal, of course, is to give everyone a free face mask and get them to wear it,” de Blasio said.

“We don’t want to fine people. If we have to, we will,” Mayor de Blasio says. “Clearly, our goal, of course, is to give everyone a free face mask and get them to wear it.”

The mayor also said that the city’s health department has ordered non-public schools and child care centers to close if they do not follow the commission’s order on health safeguards.

The COVID test positivity rate for NYC hit above 3% on Monday, for the first time in months.

De Blasio also reiterated his previous warning, that if the situation doesn’t improve, these neighborhoods will be scaled back to the previous shutdown stages, which will see schools close and non-essential businesses shut down.

“No one wants that to happen if it can be avoided,” de Blasio said. “If it does have to happen we will target it as carefully as possible but, at this point, it is a situation that is very serious and we have to have all options on the table.”