WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Biden administration will significantly loosen federal mask-wearing guidelines to protect against COVID-19 transmission, meaning most Americans will no longer be advised to wear masks in indoor public settings.

The new metrics will still consider caseloads, but also take into account hospitalizations and local hospital capacity, which have been markedly improved during the emergence of the omicron variant. That strain is highly transmissible, but indications are that it is less severe than earlier strains, particularly for people who are fully vaccinated and boosted.

Under the new guidelines, the vast majority of Americans will no longer live in areas where indoor masking in public is recommended, based on current data.

The announcement comes as Danville’s COVID numbers continue to drop dramatically.

The local health department says new cases are down some 90% over the past month. The Virginia Department of Health reported only eight new cases in Danville Thursday. On January 24, there were 86 new cases.

The downward trend has continued since mid-January, although local health officials caution against a false sense of security, noting the virus’ variants are still with us and may be for some time to come.