Oregon to drop indoor mask requirements March 12; Wash., California taking similar steps

(Update: Adding OHA/ODE news conference)

SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) -- As case counts continue to fall fast, two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, the governors of Oregon, Washington and California made a first-ever joint announcement of their "updated health guidance" on Monday, as Gov. Kate Brown said the state will lift indoor public-health masking requirements, including schools, just before midnight on Friday, March 11.

That new date is about a week earlier than announced last week and nearly three weeks before the initial state-set goal of March 31.

The governors said all three states will move "from mask requirements to mask recommendations in schools."

Brown said state and federal mask requirements in some settings, such as health care and transit, "will remain in place for a period of time."

California Gov. Gavin Newsom said his state is moving a bit quicker, as of Tuesday, to drop the indoor mask requirements, while they "will be strongly recommended for unvaccinated individuals in most indoor settings."

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said his state has the same March 11 date to lift indoor mask requirements, though all three governors noted they still will be required in some settings, such as health care, prisons and long-term care facilities.

Here's the full announcement: