Update, Nov. 2:

Montgomery County, Maryland will end all mask mandates permanently once 85% of the county’s population is fully vaccinated, following a rule change approved by the county council on Tuesday.

Currently, 69% of the population is fully vaccinated, according to county data, and officials are preparing to roll out vaccines for children ages 5 to 11, pending CDC approval.

Under another change the council approved Tuesday, masks will again be required in public indoor spaces only after the county experiences seven consecutive days of “substantial” COVID-19 transmission. Previously, a mask mandate could be triggered when cases rose to that level for any period of time.

The county is currently in a state of substantial COVID-19 transmission, with a new case rate of 51.2 per 100,000 residents over the past seven days, but there is no mask requirement in effect. The county lifted the mandate last week amid a decline in cases, only to see cases pop back up almost immediately. The council moved to change the rules after residents and business owners called for more predictability.

“This aligns much better with the current times,” said Councilmember Nancy Navarro (D-District 4) during today’s vote.

Original: Montgomery County is slated to reinstate its mask mandate Wednesday at 12:01 a.m., less than a week after it lifted the regulation.

But with case counts fluctuating, the county is considering changing its protocol on how and when to change masking rules. Lawmakers are voting on a new resolution tomorrow, which could push the return of the mask mandate back to Tuesday, November 9.

The mask mandate was lifted on Thursday after the county saw seven consecutive days of fewer than 50 cases per 100,000 people per day, putting it at “moderate” transmission according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But Montgomery almost immediately crossed that threshold again on Friday, according to county data.

With cases in the category of substantial transmission, the CDC suggests that people should wear face coverings regardless of vaccination status, and a resolution by the county’s board of health reiterates that guidance.

Dr. James Bridgers, the county’s acting health officer, notified the county council of the change in transmission status on Saturday.

“This change means that the Board of Health regulation mandating indoor masks will resume starting on Wednesday, Nov. 3 at 12:01 a.m. unless action is taken by the Board of Health to amend the regulation,” the county said in a release.

County Council President Tom Hucker told reporters Monday that councilmembers may change the protocol Tuesday, requiring the county to record seven consecutive days of substantial transmission before reinstating the mask mandate. If the county votes affirmatively on that change and case counts remain in substantial transmission until Friday, the mask mandate would return Nov. 9. There would also be a four day grace period for businesses to come into compliance.

Hucker added that councilmembers could make other changes to the resolution.

“We can either have a more conservative, more constrictive policy or less,” Hucker said at his weekly press conference. “I don’t think there’s any perfect answer. [Experts with National Institute of Health and other medical facilities] confirm there is no perfect answer.”

Montgomery is currently above the threshold for substantial transmission, recording roughly 51 new cases per 100,000 people a day, according to county data.

“The point of public health mitigation measures against transmission is to bring them back when you need them,” Neil Seghal, an assistant professor at University of Maryland’s School of Public Health, told DCist/WAMU Friday last week. “The way that I look at this is that none of these restrictions were meant to be an exit-only door.”

Elsewhere in the region, all jurisdictions remain at “substantial” transmission levels. Prince George’s County extended its indoor mask mandate last week, as positive COVID case rates are about 62 cases per 100,000 people per day over the last seven days, according to the CDC. Counties in Northern Virginia remain above 56 cases per 100,000 per day over the last seven days. The District has some of the highest new COVID case numbers in the region, with more than 92 cases per 100,000 people a day over the last seven days.

This story was updated to reflect comments made by Montgomery County officials on Monday.