GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – As questions arise about the resurgence of mask recommendations, public officials don’t seem to be considering turning that into a requirement anytime soon.
Mask mandates were a major debate this time last year – and with a rise in Delta-variant COVID-19 cases in Wisconsin, Governor Tony Evers is asking people to consider masking up in some situations.
“The Supreme Court has tied our hands around that, so we’ll rely on people to do the right thing,” Evers said during a stop in Ashwaubenon on Tuesday. “Obviously people in different counties will follow the advice of the CDC, I’ll do it to the best of my ability, and various employers are working hard across the state…People are taking this seriously, so I think there will be enough folks masking up if they need to be. But at the end of the day, this is solvable, folks.”
The best solution, Evers says, is vaccination. He confirmed that his office is looking into possible incentives for people to get vaccinated, similar to those offered in other neighboring states, but he’s not keen on it so far.
“It’s just a quick increase, and then continue to level off. So even while we’re thinking about incentives, we have to make sure that people in Wisconsin are talking about this and getting their friends and neighbors [to get vaccinated],” Evers said. “There’s all sorts of times where we, collectively as a society, decide there’s something more important than individual freedom. And that is the common good of the state or the nation.”
He points out that people already make those kinds of decisions when it comes to things like speed limits on the roads and driving on the correct side of the road. While it’s not an apples-to-apples comparison, he says the point still stands.
As for the local level, Brown County public health officials are simply looking at what the state and CDC are currently recommending for masking policies.
“They’re recommending individuals to wear masks. So right now it’s a recommendation, it’s not a mandate. Individuals have the choice to make their own decisions, and that’s where we’re at right now,” said Brown County Executive Troy Streckenbach. “If this small gesture, by wearing a mask, helps us get this under control so that businesses can get back to business and our kids to get into school – I don’t know if that’s a hard thing to ask. But mandating it? No…It’s the personal choice of the business to make a recommendation or policy, but as far as mandating it countywide? That’s not in the cards.”
Streckenbach is hopeful any mitigation efforts will help the case numbers fall. But, like the governor, he’s encouraging people to consider getting vaccinated if they haven’t had the shots already.
“Hopefully, we’ll continue to see those numbers going up with vaccinations in Brown County. Hopefully this Delta variant gets under control,” Streckenbach told WTAQ News. “It’s a personal choice, of course. We recommend that they contact their personal doctor or the physician that helps them to learn more about what the vaccine is and isn’t this point.”
