Quarantined commissioners say no to Westmoreland courthouse mask mandate

Westmoreland County commissioners, in quarantine this week after exposure to an office staffer who tested positive for coronavirus, said Thursday they will not require masks be worn at the courthouse.

Face coverings have been optional for workers and visitors to the courthouse in downtown Greensburg since Gov. Tom Wolf lifted a state mandate in late June, even as coronavirus cases surge throughout the state. Westmoreland County had 93 new cases reported Wednesday.

“At this time, we are following the instructions on the CDC guidelines and, if the state comes back with a mask mandate, we will follow that,” said Commissioner Sean Kertes.

The Centers for Disease Control — in revised guidelines issued earlier this summer as case numbers soared with the emergence of the delta variant — calls for everyone, regardless of vaccine status, to wear masks indoors in areas where the level of coronavirus transmission is ranked “substantial” or above.

Westmoreland, along with Allegheny and most other counties in Pennsylvania, are now ranked by the CDC at “high,” the level above substantial.

The governor last week mandated all state workers wear masks while on the job.

Throughout the pandemic, Westmoreland’s commissioners have not issued any independent mask requirements for county workers at the courthouse. Masks are required for staff and inmates at the Westmoreland County Prison and for employees at Westmoreland Manor, the county-owned nursing home in Hempfield.

Kertes and Commissioner Doug Chew were quarantining at home on Thursday after they came in contact with a commissioners’ office staffer who tested positive for the virus this week. Commissioner Gina Cerilli Thrasher has not been at the courthouse this week. She attended Thursday’s specially scheduled meeting by phone, as did Kertes and Chew.

All three commissioners contracted the coronavirus last year.

Meanwhile, there were relatively few workers and visitors at the courthouse who were seen wearing masks on Thursday. Most of the handful of county employees who attended Thursday’s commissioners meeting were masked, but few people seated in courtrooms throughout the day wore face coverings.

There are no requirements by judges for court staff, participants or spectators to wear masks.

Patricia Oliver, of North Huntingdon, came to Thursday’s commissioners’ meeting to specifically question the courthouse masking policy and the decision in May to discontinue posting daily coronavirus case counts on the county’s website.

“I guess the CDC guidelines mean nothing,” Oliver said.

The coronavirus has impacted county operations over the last several weeks. The county’s tax office was closed to the public for a week after several employees tested positive.

On Thursday, a new covid outbreak was reported at the county jail, where 29 inmates tested positive since Aug. 18.

Warden Bryan Kline said all infected inmates are isolated in one unit. Masked inmates did appear in court on Thursday.