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SALT LAKE CITY — In anticipation of Utah's mask mandate ending April 10, the state is planning on making vaccines available to every adult in Utah by April 1, according to a statement from Gov. Spencer Cox's office Tuesday night.
"Once it became clear that the Legislature planned to end the mask mandate immediately, and with a veto proof majority, our administration worked with them to push the date back to get as many people vaccinated as possible," Cox's spokeswoman Jennifer Napier Pearce said in a statement. "We anticipate opening up vaccine eligibility to every adult in the state on April 1 and will likely have 1.5 million first doses in the state by April 10."
Pearce emphasized the importance of individuals still wearing a mask and noted that the mandate will continue after April 10 for schools and large gatherings. She also said that businesses can still require masks past the mandate.
"Every day we're vaccinating upwards of 25,000 people," Cox said on the last night of the 2021 legislative session, adding that if most vulnerable Utahns are vaccinated, "then the restrictions don't matter as much."
"So we won't get through everyone before the potential mask mandate can go away, but we'll go through a lot of people," he said, as well as pointing out the importance of the mandate remaining for gatherings over 50 people. And the governor said if the pandemic takes a turn for the worse, the Legislature can enact new restrictions.
A total of 573,525 Utahns have received at least one dose of the vaccine, while 319,127 are now fully vaccinated, according to the Utah Department of Health. A total of 878,487 vaccines have been administered in the state as of Tuesday.
Vaccine rollout timeline
- March 4: Adults age 50 and older
- Feb. 25: Utahns age 16 and up with comorbidities
- Feb. 16: Utahns age 65 and older
- Jan. 11: All K-12 school teachers or staff
- Dec. 10: Health care workers, residents and staff of long-term care facilities
Contributing: Ashley Fredde
