UC San Diego Campus Notice
OFFICE OF THE CHANCELLOR
May 7, 2021
ALL STUDENTS, STAFF AND ACADEMICS AT UC SAN DIEGO (including UC San Diego Health)

Campus Masking Policy Update

Effective immediately, UC San Diego has updated campus guidelines for outdoor mask wearing in accordance with federal, state and county health officials. Fully vaccinated, and in some instances unvaccinated, individuals are no longer required to wear masks in certain outdoor settings and situations. 

Outdoor Settings

Fully vaccinated individuals do not need to wear face coverings outdoors unless they are attending large crowded events such as sporting events, concerts, fairs, festivals, parades or other outdoor gatherings of 300 people or more. 

Unvaccinated individuals are required to wear face coverings during most outdoor activities when they cannot maintain six feet of distance from other people. Exceptions include going for walks, jogs or bike rides, or when taking part in small outdoor gatherings where everyone else is fully vaccinated.

While masks may not be required in outdoor settings, everyone should have a mask with them at all times while on campus. 

Masks are still required for all individuals, regardless of vaccination status, who attend in-person courses held in outdoor classrooms.  

Indoor Settings

As the virus spreads more easily indoors, everyone, regardless of vaccination status, is required to wear face coverings while shopping, dining (except to eat or drink), exercising, studying (away from your primary residence), or attending indoor meetings or events. Laboratory settings require everyone to be masked and distanced. 

In indoor settings except for one's primary residence, including public transportation, face coverings continue to be required regardless of vaccination status, unless noted in the exemptions below.

The following specific settings are exempt from face covering requirements:
  • Persons in a car alone or solely with members of their own household,
  • Persons who are working alone in a closed office or room,
  • Persons who are obtaining a medical or cosmetic service involving the nose or face for which temporary removal of the face covering is necessary to perform the service,
  • Workers who wear respiratory protection, or
  • Persons who are specifically exempted from wearing face coverings by other CDPH guidance.
The following individuals are exempt from wearing face coverings at all times:
  • Persons younger than two years old. Very young children must not wear a face covering because of the risk of suffocation.
  • Persons with a medical condition, mental health condition, or disability that prevents wearing a face covering. 
  • This includes persons with a medical condition for whom wearing a face covering could obstruct breathing or who are unconscious, incapacitated, or otherwise unable to remove a face covering without assistance. 
  • Those exempted from wearing a face covering due to a medical condition who are employed in a job involving regular contact with others must wear a non-restrictive alternative, such as a face shield with a drape on the bottom edge, as long as their condition permits it.
  • Persons who are hearing impaired, or communicating with a person who is hearing impaired, where the ability to see the mouth is essential for communication.
  • Persons for whom wearing a face covering would create a risk to the person related to their work, as determined by local, state, or federal regulators or workplace safety guidelines.
Visits

As defined in the CDPH Fully Vaccinated Persons Guidance, fully vaccinated people are permitted to visit, without wearing masks or physical distancing, with other fully vaccinated people in indoor or outdoor settings. Fully vaccinated people are also permitted to visit, without wearing masks or physical distancing, with unvaccinated people (including children) from a single household who are at low risk for severe COVID-19 disease in indoor and outdoor settings.

Vaccination is Crucial to Campus Health & Wellbeing

The risk for COVID-19 exposure and infection will continue to remain until we reach community immunity through the use of vaccinations. If you have not yet been vaccinated, vaccinations are available at no cost to UC San Diego students and employees at RIMAC Arena. Vaccination appointments for students, faculty and staff are no longer required. Details about walk-up vaccinations will be distributed via campus notice later today. 

For updates on campus safety guidelines and vaccination options for our campus community, please visit the Return to Learn website. 

Pradeep K. Khosla
Chancellor
University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92093