Mario TamaParishioners attend Sunday Mass at St. Augustine Catholic Church on August 15, 2021 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Parishioners wore face coverings during Mass inside the historic church which is recognized as the oldest Black Catholic parish in the country. Hospitalizations in the state for COVID-19 passed another record August 13th to 2,907 patients, the last date for which data is available.
New Mexico and Washington are among the states that have recently reinstituted mask mandates applying to all indoor activities, but overall the restrictions in place remain less burdensome than they were a year ago.