Mask mandates for Mississippi counties ended on Wednesday, but the City of Meridian’s order will remain in effect until March 31.

Gov. Tate Reeves announced on Tuesday that mandates in many counties, including Lauderdale, Neshoba, Newton, Kemper and Clarke Counties, would be lifted at 5 p.m. on   on Wednesday. Meridian Mayor Percy Bland said, though, that he is keeping the city’s  mandate until it expires at the end of the month, at which time he will review it. 

“The virus is still present with us, and the risks of getting infected and becoming sick is still a very real threat,” Bland said on Wednesday. “The risk of infecting someone else is still possible, so the importance of wearing a mask has not changed.”

Bland said many college students will return to Meridian for spring break, and pointed to the presence of a COVID-19 variant strain in Mississippi.

The Mississippi State Department of Health reported in February that one case of the U.K. variant strain had been detected in the state.

The same day that Reeves announced the roll back of county mandates, the Mississippi State Department of Health issued guidelines for residents at least 65 years old or at least 16 years old with serious chronic medical conditions.

The guidance says that these individuals should avoid all gatherings outside the household and any in-person mass gathering, including religious ceremonies and sporting events, until they are fully protected by an approved COVID-19 vaccine.

The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines are fully effective two weeks after the second dose, and the Johnson & Johnson one-dose vaccine is fully effective 28 days after it is recieved. 

Reeves also announced that businesses will be allowed to operate at full capacity starting Wednesday at 5 p.m. Restaurants, bars, gyms and retail businesses were previously required to operate at a capacity of no greater than 75%.

Reeves’ new order does require masks in K-12 schools, though, and limits ticketed seating at indoor arenas to 50% capacity. At these arenas, indoor club areas will be limited to 75% capacity, and suites will be limited to 75% capacity.

Johnson & Johnson vaccine

State Health Officer Dr. Thomas Dobbs spoke about the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine at the press conference on Tuesday. The vaccine, which the Food and Drug Administration authorized for emergency use on Saturday, is given in one dose.

Dobbs said that Mississippi has been allocated 24,000 doses of the vaccine this week. He said that on Tuesday, the state added new drive-thru vaccination appointments for the vaccine. When booking a drive-thru vaccination appointment, individuals can choose to receive the J&J vaccine, if they wish.

The Lauderdale County drive-thru site will offer the J&J vaccine on Thursday, according to the Mississippi State Department of Health.

COVID-19 case and death numbers

Mississippi reported on Wednesday 380 new cases of the coronavirus and 19 additional COVID-19 related deaths, bringing the state’s totals to 295,675 cases and 6,743 deaths.

Lauderdale County reported one new case of COVID-19 and no additional COVID-19 related deaths on Wednesday, bringing the county’s totals to 6,837 cases and 226 deaths.

The Mississippi State Department of Health reported on Tuesday that 409,892 people had received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine in Mississippi. Of those people, 227,961 had received two doses of COVID-19 vaccine.

COVID-19 case and death numbers for local counties are listed below.

Clarke County: no new cases; 1,693 total cases since March 2020. No additional deaths; 71 total deaths since March 2020.

Newton County: nine new cases; 2,308 total cases. No additional deaths; 52 total deaths since March 2020.

Kemper County: one new case; 903 total cases. No additional deaths; 23 total deaths since March 2020.

Neshoba County: no new cases; 3,817 total cases. No additional deaths; 169 total deaths since March 2020.

MSDH presumed that 278,162 people in Mississippi had recovered from COVID-19 as of March 1. The department also reported that there are 61 ongoing outbreaks of COVID-19 in long-term-care facilities.