Indoor masking recommended again in Northeast counties

The "high" community level suggests there is a "high potential for healthcare system strain" and a "high level of severe disease."

Although COVID-19 infection and hospitalizations rates have been steadily on the rise across the United States, nowhere have the increases been more significant than in the Northeast.

Across the New England and greater New York and New Jersey regions, infection rates are nearing their highest levels in three months. COVID-19 related hospitalizations are increasing too -- with daily admissions levels more than doubling in the last month.

Overnight, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its community risk levels, pushing many counties across the Northeast, particularly in New York and Massachusetts, to the "high" alert level. The "high" community level suggests there is a "high potential for healthcare system strain" and a "high level of severe disease", and thus, the CDC recommends that people wear a mask in public indoor settings, including schools.

"If we were still using the original CDC COVID-19 risk classification, the northeast would be bright red, indicating uncontrolled community spread. This part of the country has some of the highest vaccination and booster rates, yet infections are still increasing," Dr. Maureen Miller, professor of epidemiology at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, told ABC News.