SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Governor Spencer Cox has signed HB0294, which effectively terminates the Utah Department of Health’s statewide mask mandate on April 10.

Masks will still be required in schools as well as in large gatherings of 50 people or more. Local health departments can also issue new orders requiring masks with approval from a relevant county legislative body.

The new law, which has been nicknamed the state’s COVID-19 “endgame” bill, also lists conditions for terminating all health orders related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

They include:

• the state’s 14-day case rate is less than 191 per 100,000 people;
• the statewide seven-day average COVID-19 ICU utilization is less than 15%; and
• the Utah Department of Health provides notice that 1,633,000 prime doses of a COVID-19 vaccine have been allocated to the state.

The state’s current health order, which requires face masks, is in effect through Thursday.

At the beginning of the month, state epidemiologist Dr. Angela Dunn said she did not want to put a date on when Utah will meet the criteria for dropping the mask mandate and other restrictions because there are too many factors involved.

“My preference is that the masks are the very last thing to go after we have herd immunity, after a vaccine is available to all Utahns and after we see a drop in cases even lower than what we have now,” Dunn said.

Gov. Cox also moved vaccination eligibility up for all Utahns age 16 and older, allowing more residents to get vaccinated before the mandate expires next month.

He also reminded Utahns that businesses still have the right to require masks, and several have announced plans to require masks after April 10.

“If you don’t like it, go shop somewhere else,” he said. “You don’t need to be a jerk to people that you come in contact with.”

Cox also advised against verbally attacking those who choose not to wear masks after the mandate has been lifted.