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CORONAVIRUS

Coronavirus: in which US states is wearing a face mask mandatory?

According to the volunteer organisation Masks4All, there are only five states in the US where wearing a mask is not enforced.

A sign on a lamppost requests people to wear face masks in the Georgetown district of Washington, DC on June 22, 2020. - Washington, DC begins Phase Two of reopening on June 22, 2020 as additional restrictions have been lifted on restaurants, nonessential
MANDEL NGANAFP

There is some kind of mask requirement in place in 45 of the 50 states in the US, according to information compiled by Masks4All, a volunteer organisation that advocates the wearing of face coverings amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Statewide face-mask requirements in 18 US states

Of those 45 states, 18 have implemented statewide rules of varying strictness, forcing citizens to put on a mask either everywhere in public; in public spaces where social distancing isn’t possible; or only in businesses.

The full list of these states is: Delaware, New Jersey, Michigan, Maryland, Illinois, Pennsylvania, New York, Hawaii, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Virginia, California, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Maine, Nevada, Washington and North Carolina.

Masks must also be worn throughout Puerto Rico (everywhere in public) and Washington, DC (in most indoor public spaces).

People wear face masks as they arrive at the beach in Oceanside, California.
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People wear face masks as they arrive at the beach in Oceanside, California.MIKE BLAKEREUTERS

Five states do not require face masks

There are no face-mask rules at all in Iowa, Montana, South Dakota and Wisconsin, while Utah strongly recommends coverings - and provides them for free - but does not enforce their use.

The remaining 27 states in the US either only require employees to wear a covering, or have mask-use orders in place in some, but not all parts.

Find out more about the face-mask requirements in each US state or territory.

Live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic

As of 16:30 ET on Monday, there had been 2,564,163 coronavirus cases in the United States, leading to 125,928 deaths. You can follow live, America-focused coverage of the Covid-19 crisis by reading our dedicated US rolling feed.