Masks are now required in Denver schools and child care facilities, according to a new public health order released Tuesday, which covers everyone 2 years of age and older.

The order won’t change anything for Denver Public Schools, which announced earlier this month that it would require masks in all indoor settings, regardless of vaccination status. But it does impose the mandate on child care settings and private and charter schools. For schools, it’s effective for all “students, teachers, staff and visitors” from preschool up through 12th grade. 

The order is effective beginning Wednesday and “will remain in effect indefinitely with updates made as needed base on case rates and vaccination rates in Denver,” the city wrote in a press release. 

“While it’s imperative that all eligible people continue to get vaccinated, masks add another layer of protection for children, especially those too young to be vaccinated,” Bob McDonald, the executive director of the city’s Department of Public Health and Environment, said in a statement. “Requiring face coverings in schools and childcare facilities will protect against the spread of the highly contagious delta variant and will help maintain in person learning this school year.”

The move comes shortly after the city announced it would require all city employees, as well as school personnel, health care workers and others, to be vaccinated by Sept. 30. DPS subsequently announced it would require masks, a move that Gov. Jared Polis has resisted instituting – along with any other COVID-19 mitigation measures – on a statewide basis. Both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the state Department of Public Health and Environment recommend masking in school settings.

The city allows a handful of exemptions, according to the release:

• “People who are deaf, hard of hearing, or otherwise living with a disability where fully observing facial expressions is essential to communication

• “Individuals who must temporarily remove a face covering for identification purposes

• “Individuals who are actively engaged in a public safety role, such as law enforcement, firefighters or emergency medical personnel.”