Grambling contemplates return to mask policy

GRAMBLING – The city of Grambling is considering reinstating a mask policy in the face of increasing COVID-19 cases in Lincoln Parish and statewide.

Mayor Alvin Bradley, Jr., said he expects to bring a recommendation to the Grambling City Council at its Oct. 5 meeting.

Any new policy is likely to call for masks to be worn during council meetings and by anyone entering the City Hall lobby, Bradley said during Thursday night’s regular council meeting.

The mayor said he’s visited with City Hall employees and “since there’s an uptick in COVID-19 they thought implementing that mask policy would be a good idea right now.”

In Lincoln Parish, new cases of the highly contagious respiratory virus were higher in August than they’d been since February, according to the Louisiana Department of Health.

Statewide, confirmed cases and hospitalizations more than doubled between the end of May and early August, leading state health officer Dr. Joe Kanter to say Louisiana was entering another COVID surge — the eighth since 2020.

The bulk of the new cases are apparently from new mutations of the Omicron COVID variant tagged EG.5 and FL.1.5.1.

To slow the spread of COVID, Dr. Tonya Hunter, medical director for the Lincoln Parish- inclusive state public health Region 8, said people should frequently wash their hands, use sanitizer, stay home if they’re sick, and, for extra protection wear a good quality mask.