Masks are now recommended in 14 of Maine’s counties

By Christopher Burns, Bangor Daily News Staff

Masks are no longer recommended in Cumberland County, but Mainers should continue to wear them regardless of vaccination status in 14 other counties because of rising COVID-19 infections.

There are now 48.14 cases per 100,000 people in Cumberland County as of Thursday, down from 56.95 the day before, according to a Bangor Daily News analysis.

The only other county exempt from the mask recommendation is Sagadahoc (41.83).

Those recommendations remain in force in Androscoggin (60.95), Aroostook (193.87), Franklin (112.59), Hancock (100.02), Kennebec (67.86), Knox (88), Lincoln (89.51), Oxford (87.997), Penobscot (189.95), Piscataquis (315.76), Somerset (164.41), Waldo (156.11), Washington (60.55) and York (132.92) counties, data show.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends people wear masks indoors regardless of vaccination status if there is substantial transmission of the virus in their community, defined as 50 or more cases per 100,000 people at a county level on a weekly basis.