Mask mandate request submitted to state

WORLAND – After a nearly two-hour long discussion, Washakie County Health Officer Dr. Ed Zimmerman informed the Washakie County Commissioners on Tuesday that he had sent a order to the Wyoming Department of Health (WDH) for approval that would impose a mask mandate for Washakie County due to a recent uptick in cases and hospitalizations in the county and statewide.

Zimmerman told the commissioners that the request was in response to a letter recently sent by public health officers from 21 of the 23 Wyoming counties asking for a statewide mask mandate that were alarmed at the increase in cases statewide that has led to a rise in hospitalizations. Zimmerman said that he had submitted the request earlier in the day to the state prior to meeting with the County Commission, Worland area business owners, health officials and other county officials.

The submission to state health officer Dr. Alexia Harrist must be approved by her and then the State Attorney General’s Office before it is put into effect.

As of press time on Tuesday, 12 counties had their mandates approved by the state. Albany, Carbon, Goshen, Hot Springs, Laramie, Lincoln, Natrona, Park, Sublette, Sheridan, Sweetwater and Teton counties all had their mask mandates approved on or prior to Nov. 17. Washakie County joined Converse as the two counties pending approval, and Zimmerman said at the meeting that he anticipated all 23 counties submitting a plan for a mask mandate.

MEETING DISCUSSION

At the beginning of the meeting, Zimmerman cited an increase of results from rapid tests recently that has contributed to the 215 total cases that Washakie County has had overall since March.

He also cited studies pointing to the effectiveness of masks and how they help at least reduce the risk of transmitting the disease.

Chairman Commissioner Fred Frandson responded by pointing out that the mandate does not allow flexibility for businesses to allow for employees to not wear masks should they be protected from the public by glass or other barriers. This was a main reason for him to not support a mask mandate.

Zimmerman responded by saying the mandate for everyone was intended to protect employees from each other as well as the public.

Commissioner Terry Wolf provided a response that cited studies that did not show the effectiveness of masks, he did this not to oppose masks in general, but to show that there are two sides to each argument and is unsure whether the data conclusively points to the effectiveness of masks.

Wolf felt as if they should leave it up to the individual businesses to enact a mandate within their business and felt that the citizens should respect the decision from each business.

Zimmerman responded by saying he felt that if there is a countywide mask mandate that it would take less pressure off of the businesses to take action and take less criticism from people that would not approve a mask mandate in individual businesses.

Commissioner Aaron Anderson said that he would rather see an effort from business owners to be more aggressive regarding social distancing and wearing masks and see the effectiveness of the decision in a couple of weeks.

Brandon Yule of Blair’s said that he has been receiving around 1,500 customers each week since the beginning of the pandemic and anticipates that doubling during the holiday season. Yule said he has implemented mandatory masks for employees at certain points throughout the year, and has received some blowback from employees.

Yule said that several of his employees have tested positive throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, but none of his other employees subsequently tested positive because they were wearing masks. Yule said he felt as if the whole community needs to be on the same page in order to get the problem under control, and he feels the mandate would be a good solution for a short duration of time.

Health care professionals from Banner Health Clinic, Red Rock Family Practice and Washakie Medical Center stressed how this has affected the medical offices in Worland. They stressed how if they do not get the number of cases under control it would overwhelm them more than it already is doing. Professionals from Red Rock in particular challenged the commissioners to step up to help promote and encourage social distancing as the right thing to do. They feel it should be seen as a step to be taken now and not forever.

Wyoming Sugar Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Mike Greear discussed with the County Commission how he has implemented policies throughout the process to ensure the safety of his workers. This includes a mask mandate for his employees should they be in close contact with each other at work. Greear said that he did the mandate to help protect his employees, but he does not believe that the government should mandate masks rather it should be left up to the individual business.

Anderson again responded by saying he believes that the county needs to be more aggressive and promote proper procedures during this time.

“I am not on the fence of having government tell us what to do, I believe in my business and I as a county commissioner do not want to tell anybody what they can and cannot do,” Frandson said.

He said he understands that masks and other items such as social distancing do work but he feels that even though other places nationally have implemented them that there will be a spike regardless of masks or not. He, along with other business owners, said they know that the county could not afford another shutdown of the economy.

Washakie County Sheriff Steve Rakness said that he and Worland Police Chief Gabe Elliott had discussed how a mask mandate would be enforced and said that they would not go around being the “mask police” writing tickets simply for someone not wearing a mask. He said that they would deal with calls should a business request their assistance with an individual escalating a situation due to a mask mandate.

The commissioners continually stressed throughout the meeting that they do not want to support a local area mask mandate if they do not have to because they do not feel it is an elected official’s position to impose such an order on residents. They do support the medical field in this fight but do not believe they should impose these orders.

Zimmerman understood that he would take the brunt of the sword for making this decision so quickly, but felt that he along with the other public health officials needed to act now to stop the rise in cases and hospitalizations as Wyoming had over 200 hospitalized as of press time.

The commissioners determined at the end they would send a letter to businesses urging them to encourage social distancing measures due to the recent surge of cases, as well as begin advertising the need to maintain social distancing and they would send a letter to Harrist with their opinions regarding a mask mandate in the county.

HOT SPRINGS ORDER

Hot Springs County had a mandate approved that went into effect on Nov. 18 that will last until Dec. 4. The order will require masks to be worn into all retail and commercial businesses along with county and municipal buildings. They must also be worn when someone is receiving health care services or riding on any form of public transportation.

Face coverings are not required when a person is working in a single office that does not receive regular visits from the public but must be worn when the public enters. Minors aged 2 and younger are not required to wear a face covering. Face coverings are not required if a person has a medical condition, is hearing impaired, creates a risk to their work if a face mask is required, obtaining a service related to the nose or face where temporary removal is necessary, a brief moment for identification purposes and exercising in the gym.

The order states that any person violating the order maybe subject to criminal prosecution under state statute, which states, “Any person who shall violate any of the provisions of this act, or any lawful rule or regulation made by the state department of health pursuant to the authority herein granted, or who shall fail or refuse to obey any lawful order issued by any state, county or municipal health officer pursuant to the authority granted in this act shall be deemed guilty of misdemeanor, and shall be punished except as otherwise provided therein by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00), or by imprisonment for not more than one year or by both such fine and imprisonment.”

There is a provision in statute for a penalty of not more than $100 or six months in jail.

The Washakie County order is expected to be similar to the Hot Springs order, but specific details regarding the Washakie County order submitted to Harrist are unknown at this time. Zimmerman cited during the meeting that the order is set to last through Jan. 30, 2021. He stated that the mandate may be pulled back at any time should the situation improve, but believes the end of January would be a good indicator if the masks work to flatten the curve.

More information will be provided on our website if the order is approved or denied.