Mask mandate to be lifted in least populous Nevada county

CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) — The state’s indoor mask mandate for people vaccinated for COVID-19 will be lifted Friday for Nevada’s least populous county while more stringent requirements remain in place in the rest of the state. Health officials said the coronavirus has remained at low transmission levels in Esmeralda County in rural southwest Nevada for two weeks, allowing the mandate to be lifted. The requirement for indoor masking remains in place for unvaccinated people in Esmeralda  county, which has fewer than 1,000 residents. Mask mandates for all people, whether vaccinated or not, remain in place for all other counties because transmission remain at high or substantial levels.