The 2021 Emmy Awards took place this past Sunday and emanated from LA Live's Event Deck, though it was a great night for TV - there was a lot of backlash at the sight of all attendees being maskless.
Currently, in Los Angeles County, there is a mask mandate at all indoor locations DESPITE vaccination status. This mask mandate in L.A. County requires everyone to wear a mask at all indoor gatherings - the question many had after watching the Emmy's was why don't the rules apply in this situation.
The Emmy Awards had approximately 600 attendees with a few, if any, wearing masks. Pictures from the event show staff, assistants, and media wearing masks while on the red carpet and only a few production team members wearing face coverings inside the venue. Social distancing was not even implemented inside the seemingly crammed venue.
After all the backlash and numerous complaints, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health commented and justified the maskless Emmy Awards. In a statement to CNN, they said,
“LA County’s Health Officer requires everyone to wear a mask indoors, whether vaccinated or unvaccinated,”...“However, exceptions are made for film, television and music productions, as additional safety modifications are made for these controlled interactions.”
The L.A. County Department of Public Health was also told that all attendees tested negative for COVID-19 within 48 hours and the production crew were required to be vaccinated or test negative for COVID twice per week.
Another statement from the L.A. County Department of Public Health said,
"The Emmy Award Show is a television production, and persons appearing on the show are considered performers," ... "All persons appearing on or in the audience of the Emmy Award Show were fully vaccinated against COVID-19."
The 2021 Emmy Awards did not violate COVID safety protocols, according to the The L.A. County Department of Public Health.