Ohio State University to make masking optional beginning March 11

Ohio State will be lifting indoor mask requirements in its academic and general-purpose buildings.

Starting at 6 p.m. Friday, March 11, masks will be optional in most indoor spaces on The Ohio State University campuses, including residence halls, dining facilities, classrooms, offices, and the Ohio Union.

The university will continue to require masks in clinical health care settings, COVID-19 testing locations, child care centers, and on public transportation.

In settings where masks are optional, students, faculty, staff and visitors can decide on an individual basis whether or not they will continue to wear a mask – unless they are Wexner Medical Center employees who received an exemption from the COVID-19 vaccination requirement. Those employees must wear a mask inside any medical center facility.

More than 93% of university community members are vaccinated, and 25% have reported that they have received a booster shot to enhance their protection against COVID-19.

In a statement, the university said, "Ohio State continues to urge all members of the community to take necessary precautions against COVID-19, including receiving all vaccination and booster shots for which they are eligible."

The university will maintain its COVID-19 surveillance testing program, which includes weekly testing of students in university housing, in social fraternities and sororities, and with approved exemptions to the university’s vaccination requirement. Employees with approved exemptions are also required to test weekly.

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