As New COVID Variants Spread, Experts Recommend Double Masks, More Vigilance While on the one hand, daily new cases are slowly on the decline in the Bay Area and across California, on the other, we are back to square one with significant unknowns about new COVID variants appearing here and elsewhere. This puts us back to where we were last spring in some ways, with some uncertainty about how fast these new variants could proliferate, and experts are encouraging the public to wear two masks and not to make unnecessary shopping trips — all while things like outdoor dining and hair salons are ...