ORLANDO, Fla. — Emphasizing that an executive order from the governor continues to "tie the hands of local government," Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings on Monday reiterated his recommendation for residents to continue to wear masks when in close quarters with others, regardless of COVID-19 vaccination status.

Demings' appeal came as Orange County's 14-day rolling positivity rate jumped from 3.8% a month ago to 11.2% today.

"I’m asking our residents to continue to protect themselves and others by volunteering to wear masks in crowded spaces," Demings said Monday at a COVID-19 news briefing. "We ask our businesses to voluntarily comply with this recommendation."

Some businesses continue to require customers wear masks, while others say they may decide to if cases continue to rise.

“If it gets bad and they ask to, I will,” said Nice Kim, owner of Equilibre, a smoothie and sandwich shop in Orlando.

“Most of the people who come through here are local — they understand.”

Mayor Demings' appeal mirrored one he made last Monday, which marked nearly an about-face from early last month when he lifted a local state of emergency that aimed to fight the spread of the coronavirus. He said at the time that a new phase of the county’s reopening plan would lift all mask-wearing and physical-distancing requirements in previous emergency executive orders.

That came after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an executive order that eliminated and superseded any local emergency orders that imposed COVID-related restrictions or mandates on businesses or people. DeSantis' order rendered such local-government mandates powerless.

Demings said Monday that he consulted with county attorneys but that the DeSantis order continues to "tie the hands of local government to make decisions in the best interests of our residents."

County attorney Jeffrey Newton said the problem comes from a new law, approved by the governor and Legislature this past legislative session, that requires any local-government mandates regarding non-weather-related emergencies to be “narrowly tailored and not infringe upon the rights of individuals and businesses.”

“That is a very high legal standard," Newton said, adding that the governor can invalidate any local order that fails to meet it.

“It’s very problematic for local governments,” he said.

Demings noted that Orange County no longer has access to a state Department of Health database that shows updated vaccination rates throughout the area.

“We can’t reach the high legal bar if we don’t have access to the data in real time,” he said.

Demings called it a statewide isssue for which Floridians "should hold the governor and Legislature accountable for the continuing spread of the virus in our community."

"I wish there was more I could do to protect you," Demings said. "However, you own the key to your destiny during this public health crisis."

Demings and Orange County Health Department Director Dr. Raul Pino emphasized that "this is a pandemic of unvaccinated individuals."

Pino said COVID-19 cases today in Orange County reflect January data when the pandemic continued to rage but that hospitalizations and deaths "continue to reflect a decrease."

The county saw five deaths since last week — all among unvaccinated people, Pino said. Among 570 cases on Sunday, all also appeared to have been unvaccinated, he said.

"The reality is the masks are effective," Pino said. "But it is a temporary fix because it is only as good as you wearing the mask. The permanent or semipermanent fix — we don't know how long it will last — is getting vaccinated."

Local health experts say the highly infectious Delta variant is partly to blame for the increase in cases.

On top of that, Dr. Aftab Khan, an internal medicine specialist at the Davenport Medical Center, says relaxed coronavirus restrictions and slowing vaccination rates play into these latest case spikes.

At last Monday’s coronavirus briefing, Pino said the county has had 60 cases of the Delta variant. The county reported nearly 60% of eligible residents have received at least one dose of the coronavirus vaccine.

"As I've said many times," Demings said Monday, "if you are not vaccinated, now is the time to do so."

Kim, the owner of Orlando's Equilibre, said she's again requiring employees to wear masks.

That includes herself.

“Everywhere I go," she said, "I’m still wearing my mask."