Los Angeles County will lift its mask mandate for outdoor mega-events and for outdoor K–12 schools and childcare centers on Feb. 16—just days after many Super Bowl LVI attendees, including Mayor Eric Garcetti, went unmasked. On Feb. 16, COVID-19 hospitalizations in the county will fall below 2,500 for the seventh consecutive day—reaching the benchmark previously set by LA County Public Health Department Director Dr. Barbara Ferrer for the end of the outdoor mask mandate. There were 1,995 COVID-19 hospitalizations in the county on Tuesday, according to state data. The end of the county’s outdoor mask mandate will coincide with California’s indoor mask mandate, which ends on Feb. 16. During a Feb. 15 LA Board of Supervisors meeting, Supervisors Kathryn Barger and Janice Hahn called for the county to align with the state and end indoor mask mandates. “The outdoor masks requirement will be lifted for our kids on school playgrounds …