Whether you live in metropolitan Columbus or rural Beaverdam, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine demands that you wear a mask when you step foot outside your door.
DeWine is imposing a statewide mask mandate starting today at 6 p.m. His announcement is available here.
“Our preliminary data indicate that the rate of increase in new cases has slowed in the high-risk counties where masks are already mandated, so we are cautiously optimistic that things are heading in the right direction,” said Governor DeWine. “We believe that requiring masks statewide will make a significant difference and will be key to making sure other counties do not progress to a higher level of increased spread.”
Masks must be worn at all times when:
➡️At an indoor location that’s not a residence
➡️Outdoors, when unable to keep 6ft social distance from those not in your household
➡️When waiting for, riding, driving, or operating public transportation -taxi, car service, private rideshare— Governor Mike DeWine (@GovMikeDeWine) July 22, 2020
All individuals in Ohio must wear facial coverings in public at all times when:
- At an indoor location that is not a residence
- Outdoors, but unable to maintain six-foot social distance from people who are not household members
- Waiting for, riding, driving, or operating public transportation, such as a taxi, a car service, or a private car used for ride-sharing.
If you’re under 10, you don’t have to cover up.
Other exclusions are:
- Those with a medical condition or a disability or those communicating with someone with a disability;
- Those who are actively exercising or playing sports;
- Those who are officiants at religious services;
- Those who are actively involved in public safety; or
- Those who are actively eating or drinking.
- Schools should follow guidance previously issued about masks, he said.
The governor also announced a travel advisory for people coming and going from nine states.
Today, I’m announcing a travel advisory for all individuals coming into #Ohio from states reporting positive testing rates of 15% or higher for #COVID19 and recommend that those individuals self-quarantine for 14 days. pic.twitter.com/hrtbAOvDiv
— Governor Mike DeWine (@GovMikeDeWine) July 22, 2020
People should quarantine for 14 days when traveling to or from these states. DeWine said that is because these states reportedly have positive rates of 15 percent or higher:
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Florida
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Mississippi
- Nevada
- South Carolina
- Texas
DeWine may not have watched the news about Florida.
Fox News reported on investigations of affiliate Fox 35 News in Florida. That station said it investigated the state’s virus numbers by contacting testing locations. One, Orlando Health, said that the 98 percent figure is incorrect and the positivity rate is actually 9.4 percent. Another, the Orlando Veterans Affairs Medical Center, had a positivity rate of 6 percent instead of 76 percent reported by the state.
Meanwhile, Ohio officials reported 78,742 cases and 3,235 related deaths as of Wednesday, Breitbart said.
In addition to DeWine’s order, Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser signed a mandatory mask order telling people to wear a face-covering outside their homes.
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb also issued a mask mandate Wednesday, Politico said.
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Jason M. Reynolds has more than 20 years’ experience as a journalist at outlets of all sizes.
Photo “Mike DeWine” by Mike DeWine. Background Photo “Ohio Statehouse” by James St. John. CC BY 2.0.
The whole mask issue is a joke! I saw a person smoking a cigarette with a mask on and when he exhaled all of the smoke came out from all around the mask! Into the air. That means if it can come out, it can go in, all around the mask! And aren’t smoke particles MUCH larger than virus particles? Yup!
Also, think about this, if I have Covid-19, a “medical condition”, I don’t have to wear a mask! Brilliant! How about if a mask gives me “contact dermatitis”, a medical condition, also known as zits, do I have to wear a mask? Yet our Republican leaders go right along with the idiocy!