Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Message From Birx To States, Local Officials: A Mask Mandate Would Help
The Hill: Birx Says State And Local Leaders Should Issue Mask Mandates As Cases Rise
Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House coronavirus response coordinator, said governors in several states experiencing upticks in COVID-19 cases should mandate mask wearing in public. “We believe if the governors and mayors of every locality right now would mandate masks for their communities and every American would wear a mask and socially distance and not congregate in large settings where you can't socially distance or wear a mask, that we can really get control of this virus and drive down cases, as Arizona has done,” Birx said on "Fox & Friends" Thursday morning. (Hellmann, 7/30)
AP: Wisconsin Governor Orders Masks Statewide Amid Virus Surge
Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers on Thursday issued a statewide mask mandate amid a spike in coronavirus cases, setting up a conflict with Republican legislative leaders and some conservatives who oppose such a requirement and successfully sued to kill the governor’s “safer at home” order. Evers, a Democrat, declared a new public health emergency and ordered the wearing of masks for anyone age 5 and up starting on Saturday for all enclosed spaces except a person’s home. The new order also applies to outdoor bars and restaurants, except when people are eating or drinking. (Bauer, 7/30)
AP: North Dakota Reservation Orders Masks After COVID-19 Spike
Tribal leaders on the Spirit Lake Indian Reservation in northeastern North Dakota are requiring residents to wear masks to help slow the spread of the coronavirus, a rare move in a state where face coverings have not been mandated despite a steady increase in overall cases. The reservation is located primarily in Benson County, which according to The COVID Tracking Project has seen the state’s most new cases per capita in the last two weeks. Area public health workers are worried about the trend after seeing the number of positive tests jump from 16 to 70 since the middle of July. (Kolpack, 7/30)
In other news about mask-wearing —
Los Angeles Times: Men Are Dying Of Coronavirus At Higher Rates In L.A. County
Men have a mask problem.That is the view of Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and health officials, who are urging guys to cover their faces in public to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Men outside of institutional facilities are dying from COVID-19 at a higher rate than women in Los Angeles County, and recent polling has found that American men are less likely to always wear masks than women. (Money, 7/30)
The Washington Post: Security Guards, Not Retail Workers, Should Be Responsible For Enforcing Mask Rules, Union Leader Says
As more major U.S. retailers require their customers to wear masks, a growing number of store employees are being confronted by unruly and sometimes violent customers who refuse to comply. Now, the head of the largest union representing retail workers said businesses have unfairly burdened their employees with enforcing mask-wearing policies, to the detriment of workers and customers alike. Employers bear the responsibility to provide a safe workplace, said Stuart Appelbaum, president of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, who called for companies to hire security staffers to enforce a store’s mask policies or task members of management with the role. (Bellware, 7/30)
ABC News: Few Medical Reasons For Not Wearing A Face Mask
As coronavirus cases surge across the U.S., more than 30 states now require people to wear face masks in public. Several states even mandate masks while exercising outdoors. The orders have triggered a wave of backlash and bogus claims about legal and medical exemptions. But medical experts tell ABC News Live that people with concerns about masks should talk with their doctors because in nearly all cases -- even those with autism, PTSD or chronic lung disease -- wearing a face covering makes most medical sense and will not cause harm. (Dwyer, 7/30)
