Guthrie Clinic says masking is now optional at its health-care facilities

Masking is now optional at all locations of the Sayre, Pennsylvania–based Guthrie Clinic, including Guthrie Cortland Medical Center and Guthrie Ithaca City Harbor.

The organization has adjusted the policy “with COVID cases trending downward in the communities Guthrie serves,” per its announcement.

In addition, effective May 1, Guthrie will no longer require COVID pre-procedure or pre-admission testing on patients with no symptoms. Guthrie will screen all patients for COVID-19 signs, symptoms, and exposure prior to their scheduled procedure.

“According to CDC guidelines, it is the county transmission rate that determines when a health care organization can safely begin to make changes to COVID masking precautions,” Dr. Lisa Marie Esolen, executive VP and chief quality officer at Guthrie, said in a statement. “We will continue to monitor COVID transmission and prevalence throughout the counties that we serve and will adjust our masking policy accordingly if cases increase.”

About the Guthrie Clinic

Founded in 1910 by Dr. Donald Guthrie, the Guthrie Clinic is a five-hospital system with a large network of outpatient facilities that spans nearly 9,000 square miles in Pennsylvania and upstate New York. Its 6,500 caregivers include more than 700 physicians and advanced-practice providers, representing the spectrum of medical specialties and sub-specialties.