Renee Bandish, a phlebotomist, works maskless for the first time in three years on Monday, May 1, 2023, at UPMC Passavant Cranberry, the day the hospital system ended mandatory masking for staff. Cary Shaffer/Butler Eagle

Employees of UPMC went into work Monday, May 1, 2023, without facial coverings for the first time since early 2020.

Paul Hanlon, senior director of quality, patient safety and compliance for UPMC Passavant, said going into his office felt a little off.

“I have had two masks in my car for years. Any time I would walk in, I would just reach over and grab my mask and put it on instinctively,” Hanlon said. “Getting out of my car was very different today.”

UPMC ended its mask mandate Monday, so employees, patients and their families are no longer required to wear facial coverings in a majority of areas in the health system’s facilities. There are a few places in the system where masks still are required, but according to Hanlon, they are not at either of the Passavant campuses.